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S. 2026Senate119th Congress (2025-2027)In Committee

Court Legal Access and Student Support Act of 2025

Sponsored by Richard J. DurbinSen. Richard J. Durbin (D-IL)
Introduced June 11, 2025

AI-Generated Summary

Updated November 24, 2025 at 12:04 AM UTC

The Court Legal Access and Student Support Act of 2025 stops colleges and universities from forcing students into arbitration agreements as part of their enrollment contracts. It also bars schools from making students give up any legal rights to sue, such as choosing the law, having a jury trial, or selecting the court location. The law applies to any higher‑education institution defined under the Higher Education Act and becomes effective one year after passage.

Key Provisions

  • Makes the federal arbitration‑enforcement rules (Chapter 1 of Title 9) inapplicable to any enrollment agreement a student signs with a college or university.
  • Defines an “enrollment agreement” as any contract where a student commits money to a school in exchange for a program of study.
  • Amends the Higher Education Act to forbid schools from requiring students to waive or limit any right to bring a lawsuit, including rights related to choice of law, jury trial, or venue.
  • All changes take effect one year after the law is enacted.

Legislative Activity

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1 earlier action
SenateIntro Referral Latest Action

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (text: CR S3348)

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee

June 11, 2025

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SenateIntro Referral

Introduced in Senate

June 11, 2025

SenateIntro Referral

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (text: CR S3348)

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee

June 11, 2025

Floor Debate

1 member

What members said about S. 2026 on the floor

1 Democrat
Richard J. Durbin
Sen. Richard J. DurbinD-IL · Jun 11, 2025

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Record
Richard J. Durbin
Sen. Richard J. DurbinD-IL · Jun 11, 2025

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Record

Bill Text

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Introduced in SenateIssued June 11, 2025

II

119th CONGRESS

1st Session

S. 2026

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

June 11, 2025

Mr. Durbin (for himself, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Fetterman, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Markey, Mr. Reed, Ms. Warren, Mr. Van Hollen, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Booker, Mr. Whitehouse, and Mrs. Gillibrand) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

A BILL

To provide that chapter 1 of title 9 of the United States Code, relating to the enforcement of arbitration agreements, shall not apply to enrollment agreements made between students and certain institutions of higher education, and to prohibit limitations on the ability of students to pursue claims against certain institutions of higher education.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Court Legal Access and Student Support Act of 2025 or the CLASS Act of 2025.

2.

Inapplicability of chapter 1 of title 9, United States Code, to enrollment agreements made between students and certain institutions of higher education

(a)

In General

Chapter 1 of title 9 of the United States Code (relating to the enforcement of arbitration agreements) shall not apply to an enrollment agreement made between a student and an institution of higher education.

(b)

Definitions

In this section:

(1)

Enrollment agreement

The term enrollment agreement means any contract or agreement between a student and an institution of higher education under which the student makes a financial commitment to the institution in exchange for enrollment in a program of study at the institution.

(2)

Institution of higher education

The term institution of higher education has the meaning given such term in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002).

3.

Prohibition on limitations on ability of students to pursue claims against certain institutions of higher education

Section 487(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1094(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

(30)

The institution will not require any student to agree to, and will not enforce, any limitation or restriction (including a limitation or restriction on any available choice of applicable law, a jury trial, or venue) on the ability of a student to pursue a claim, individually or with others, against an institution in court.

.

4.

Effective date

This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take effect 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act.