Financial Aid Antitrust Settlement: First Payments Out, Five Schools Still Fighting
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This is the “568 Cartel” case, Henry v. Brown University. Twelve elite universities settled for almost $320 million. On July 20, 2026 the first payments went out to former students of ten of them. The claim deadline passed on December 27, 2025, so no new claims are possible. Cornell, Georgetown, MIT, Notre Dame and Penn have not settled, and their part of the case is now on appeal.
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Reviewed by Leonard Goldberg, Editor · Last updated
What the Lawsuit Says Happened
Former students sued 17 highly selective private universities in 2022. All of them belonged to the 568 Presidents Group, named after Section 568 of a federal law that lets colleges cooperate on financial-aid formulas if they admit students without regard to ability to pay.
The lawsuit alleges that the schools used a shared method to calculate financial need and, as a result, gave less need-based aid than they would have if they had competed. Plaintiffs also argue that some members were not truly need-blind, so the exemption did not apply. The universities deny this. They say their aid policies were legal and pro-competitive and that aid awards were not artificially reduced. The schools that settled did not admit wrongdoing.
Case Details
Henry, et al. v. Brown University, et al., Case No. 1:22-cv-00125, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, before Judge Matthew F. Kennelly. The settlement administrator is Angeion Group. The official website is FinancialAidAntitrustSettlement.com and the phone number is 1-833-585-3338. Court-appointed class counsel are paid from the settlement fund, not by class members.
Status: Payments Started, Claims Closed, Trial on Hold
Settled schools (paying out). Ten schools settled for $284 million, approved July 20, 2024: Brown, Chicago, Columbia, Dartmouth, Duke, Emory, Northwestern, Rice, Vanderbilt and Yale. Judge Kennelly approved distributing that money in a July 2, 2026 order. The first payments went out July 20, 2026 by ACH, PayPal, Zelle and Venmo, with paper checks expected by July 24. Caltech ($16,750,000) and Johns Hopkins ($18,500,000) settled separately and received final approval on June 26 and July 30, 2025. We could not confirm when that $35.25 million will be paid.
Non-settling schools (litigating). Cornell, Georgetown, MIT, Notre Dame and Penn lost their summary-judgment motion on January 12, 2026. A class was certified against them in June 2026. In late August 2026 the 7th Circuit agreed to hear their appeal on one issue: how the trial judge analyzed the plaintiffs' expert testimony. According to The Hoya’s September 4, 2026 report, the November trial date has been vacated. There is no settlement with these five schools.
Who Is in the Class
You are in the settlement class if, during the class period, you were a U.S. citizen or permanent resident who was enrolled full-time as an undergraduate at one of the 17 schools, received at least some need-based aid from it, and paid tuition, fees, room or board that grants did not fully cover. Loans do not count as aid for this test.
The class period runs from Fall 2003 through February 28, 2024 for most schools. For Brown, Dartmouth and Emory it starts in Fall 2004, and Caltech and Johns Hopkins have their own shorter periods.
Being in the class is not enough to get paid. You had to file a claim by December 27, 2025. If you filed for the first settlements, you were automatically included in the later ones.
How Much People Are Getting
For the ten-school fund, reported averages differ. Bloomberg Law reported that the July 2 order cites an average payout of $2,500. Business Insider, citing the settlement website, reported an average of about $2,000. Either way, your amount can be well above or below that.
The Caltech and Johns Hopkins notice estimated about $250 per claimant on average, assuming about half of the estimated 200,000 class members filed. That money is added to the same claimants' payments rather than paid through a separate claim.
Any money from Cornell, Georgetown, MIT, Notre Dame or Penn would come only from a future settlement or a trial win. Plaintiffs' expert put class-wide damages at $685 million. That is the plaintiffs' figure, not a finding.
How cases like this one end
Our copy of the federal courts’ own case database covers 6,924 antitrust casesclosed in U.S. federal district courts between 2015 and 2026, 37.3% of them filed as class actions:
- 19.1% ended in a settlement recorded by the court. Another 14.5% were dismissed voluntarily, which often follows a private settlement — so the real settlement share sits between 19.1% and 33.6%.
- 11.4% were decided on a motion before any trial.
- 1 in 119 reached a trial (0.8%), after a median of 37.1 months.
- Median time from filing to the end of the case: 11.9 months.
- Almost none record a money award in this data (33 of 6,924), and the recorded figures are capped, so we do not publish an average.
These are base rates for this type of case (federal antitrust cases) — not a prediction about this lawsuit, and not legal advice. Source: Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (civil), analysed by Settlement Insight. Cases heard in state courts are not included.
Financial Aid Antitrust Case Timeline
- 1
January 2022 — Students Sue 17 Universities
Former students file Henry v. Brown University in Chicago. The suit alleges that the 568 Presidents Group suppressed financial aid.
- 2
July 20, 2024 — $284 Million Approved
The court approves settlements with ten schools, including Brown, Yale, Columbia and Duke.
- 3
2025 — Caltech, Johns Hopkins; Claims Close
The Caltech and Johns Hopkins settlements ($35.25 million combined) receive final approval on June 26 and July 30. The claim deadline is December 27, 2025.
- 4
January–June 2026 — Trial Ordered, Class Certified
On January 12, summary judgment is denied for the five remaining schools. In June, a litigation class is certified against them.
- 5
July 2026 — First Payments Sent
A July 2 order approves distribution of the ten-school fund. Electronic payments start July 20, and paper checks follow.
- 6
August–September 2026 — Appeal, Trial Date Vacated
The 7th Circuit agrees to hear the five schools' class-certification appeal. As of September 2026, the November trial date is reported vacated.
Three Things to Watch For
With real money landing in accounts and five more schools still in the case, these are the traps that fit this one:
“Late claim” or “claim reopening” offers
The claim deadline was December 27, 2025. Anyone offering to file a late claim for a fee, or to “get you into” the next round, is selling something the court process does not offer. Claimants from the first settlements were included in the later ones automatically.
Payment messages through Venmo, Zelle or PayPal
Real payments did go out through these apps, which makes fake “your settlement is pending, confirm your login” messages believable. A payment does not require your password or a fee. Check your status only through the official website or 1-833-585-3338.
“Sign up for the Cornell/MIT/Penn payout”
There is no settlement with the five remaining schools, and their class certification is on appeal. A page collecting your Social Security number or student ID to “reserve your share” is not connected to the court.
Financial Aid Antitrust Settlement — Questions People Actually Ask
When will the financial aid antitrust settlement be paid?
For the ten-school $284 million settlement, payments began July 20, 2026 after Judge Kennelly approved the distribution on July 2, 2026. Electronic payments went first, and paper checks were expected by July 24. We could not confirm a payment date for the Caltech and Johns Hopkins money.
How much will I get?
It depends on your school's net price when you attended and on the number of claims. Reported averages for the ten-school fund are about $2,000 (Business Insider, citing the settlement website) and $2,500 (Bloomberg Law, citing the July 2 order). The Caltech and Johns Hopkins notice estimated an average of about $250 more.
Can I still file a financial aid antitrust settlement claim form?
No. The deadline was December 27, 2025 (online or postmarked), and the opt-out deadline for the Caltech and Johns Hopkins settlements was April 9, 2025. If you filed a valid claim for any of the earlier settlements, you are automatically considered for the later ones.
Which colleges settled, and which did not?
Settled: Brown, Chicago, Columbia, Dartmouth, Duke, Emory, Northwestern, Rice, Vanderbilt, Yale, Caltech and Johns Hopkins, for almost $320 million in total. Still litigating: Cornell, Georgetown, MIT, Notre Dame and Penn.
I filed a claim but have not been paid. What now?
First, check your status on the official website or call 1-833-585-3338. Confirm that your address or payment app details are current, since a payment sent to an old account or address can go astray. Our settlement check problems guide covers lost and expired payments.
Is the financial aid antitrust settlement email legitimate?
The real case is Henry v. Brown University, No. 1:22-cv-00125, administered by Angeion Group at FinancialAidAntitrustSettlement.com. If an email or text links somewhere else, asks for a fee or asks for your banking password, do not use it. Go to the official site directly instead.
Will the five remaining schools have to pay?
Unknown. In August 2026 the 7th Circuit agreed to review the class certification on one issue: the trial judge's analysis of the plaintiffs' expert. According to Higher Ed Dive, certification raised the five schools' potential damages exposure from $100,000 to at least $1.7 billion. If certification is reversed, that exposure shrinks sharply.
Is this the early decision lawsuit against 32 colleges?
No. That is a separate case. In August 2026 a federal judge allowed a lawsuit against 32 institutions over early decision admissions to proceed. This page and the 568 claims process do not cover it, and nothing filed in this case applies there.
Separate from this case: were you injured in the last 2 years?
Class-action payouts are fixed amounts through an administrator. A personal injury claim is a different case — and often worth far more. Free estimate, no obligation.
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