The Kyoto District Court ruled Wednesday that the operators of Kyoto Women's University and another college must return prepaid tuition to applicants who decided not to enroll at the schools.
Presiding Judge Satoshi Mizukami ordered them to pay back some 2.2 million yen in total to four applicants and the father of another applicant, saying the Consumer Contracts Law covers university tuition fees paid in advance. The 2.2 million yen includes tuition and a part of the enrollment fees. The plaintiffs had demanded 2.95 million yen in total.
It is the first ruling in a series of similar lawsuits nationwide challenging the practice since the law took effect in April 2001.