Illinois Attorney General, Lisa Madigan, is leading the charge in investigating and enforcing consumer protection violations in the area of student lending. According to a press release issued by the Attorney General’s office, Ms. Madigan is calling for the U.S. Department of Education to forgive student loans for students who attended Everest College or the criminal justice program at Westwood College. Ms. Madigan’s investigations into both colleges revealed that students were fraudulently lured into enrolling in programs that were poorly or non-accredited and that students took out millions of dollars in federal student loans to attend the programs. In 2015, Ms. Madigan reached a $15 million settlement with Westwood College, which included forgiving private loans of students enrolled in the school. Ms. Madigan’s efforts are in addition to a current investigation by the AG’s office into Navient, the largest servicer of student loans in the country. She has also taken action against debt relief scammers who victimize student loan debtors into paying for help that never materializes.
