JFSinIL Posted May 2, 2008 Share Posted May 2, 2008 Hubby wants me to ask - what is the name of this college. He is a lawyer, btw...I briefly ran your tale by him this morning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ms. Riding Hood Posted May 2, 2008 Share Posted May 2, 2008 My thoughts here, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FloridaLisa Posted May 2, 2008 Share Posted May 2, 2008 No, no, no. A valid and binding contract is made when you have an offer, consideration and an acceptance. In this case, the offer was the scholarship offer that was put out for bid, the consderation given was your bid (the $100) and the acceptance occurred when you bid and were awarded the winning bid. The entire terms of the contract (and any conditions) would have to have been included in the initial offer or before your acceptance. The seller cannot come along AFTER a contract has been entered and alter or add to the contract in any way. The college would be entirely wrong if they are now adding a condition that was not explicitly laid out in the offer. The fact that they *wanted* or *meant* or *intended* someone not already accepted to win the bid doesn't cut it if it wasn't clearly spelled out in the initial auction bid. CLEARLY spelled out. Read the auction paperwork with a fine-toothed comb. What terms and conditions are listed? Was that paperwork available to everyone to look at before or during the bidding? You might even go so far as to ask the folks holding the auction for a statement. Hope it works out without having to resort to an attorney. It was kind of a crazy thing to put up for auction in the first place; but they put it up and now should be held to the terms of the deal! Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barb_ Posted May 2, 2008 Share Posted May 2, 2008 They didn't contact me about it; I contacted the admissions office & asked ER's admissions counselor (a friend of ours) whether the business office had been notified that ER was the recipient of the scholarship, and also if/when/where we needed to present the certificate. That's when I learned that there might be a problem. You've gotten some terrific advice on this thread. It all sounds encouraging. Bumping for updates. Barb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoughCollie Posted May 2, 2008 Share Posted May 2, 2008 It may just take an attorney's phone call and letter to resolve this. I would be surprised if it had to go to court. I have resolved several disputes using that method. It would be more than several, I'm sure, except that I am a criminal defense attorney when I am working. I am telling you this in case getting an attorney is synonymous with a trial in your experience. RC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereks mom Posted May 3, 2008 Author Share Posted May 3, 2008 Thanks. ER works PT in an attorney's office, so no problems getting help in that area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DollyM Posted May 3, 2008 Share Posted May 3, 2008 this is just amazingly good news about the scholarship now awaiting amazingly good news about the college's position And a link to the news story with his photo holding that cert! Whoohooo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2abcd Posted May 3, 2008 Share Posted May 3, 2008 What a MIRACLE!!!! What's the latest news? If they take your ds, they'll have a happy student. If someone else would guilt their child into going, they may not be happy there. I can't even imagine how thrilled you guys must be. I just pray it all goes through as it should. Wow. God is good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JFSinIL Posted May 3, 2008 Share Posted May 3, 2008 BUMP!!!!! And WHAT college is it trying to pull a fast one????? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PiCO Posted May 3, 2008 Share Posted May 3, 2008 Spoke with ER's admissions counselor yesterday (a friend of ours), and learned that the admissions director had wanted the scholarshiip to go to someone who was not already admitted -- which ER is. However, that was not specified on the eligibility requirements that were listed alongside the scholarship certificate that was displayed at the auction. We found out about this yesterday when I contacted the admissions office to find out when & where we should present the certificate so it could be applied to ER's account. The message we got from the admissions director was that he would talk with his boss and then contact us. I'm not sure what that means. Maybe he just wants to be sure of the procedure. But I'm so afraid that they're going to tell us that because of this "loophole", they won't honor the certificate! Surely not, since the college donated the scholarship to the organization conducting the auction, and any proceeds would go to that organization, not the college, no matter who won it or how much they paid. The college still has the same amount invested whether the scholarship goes to ER or someone else. Right??? And besides, if they won't honor it, what about the money -- relatively small amount though it is -- that we bid (and already paid)??? I'm been involved in silent auctions both on the donating end (I have a business) and on the purchasing end. Sometimes the non-profit organization organizing the auction forgets to put the restrictions on the information. It is possible that the university clearly communicated the restriction to the non-profit, and the non-profit did not properly label the prize. The fact that all the auctions started at $1 with $1 bid increments regardless of the item's value tells me that this organization is new to silent auctions. So- if this is the case, and the non-profit made the mistake- is the non-profit liable for the $40,000 value lost to the university who donated the prize? The reason the restriction of new students only was probably on the prize is that the school figured they would get a new student out of the deal, thus off-setting part of the $40,000 loss of the room & board package. That said, I have had this same thing happen to me (albeit on a much smaller scale- the value was only $100.) I just gave the prize and learned to communicate better with volunteers at non-profits. However, if I was donating a prize valued at $40,000 I would not be happy that my stipulations were not followed, and the prize sold for $100. (Just wanted to give the perspective of the school. I still hope you get to keep your prize!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoughCollie Posted May 11, 2008 Share Posted May 11, 2008 What happened with this situation? Thanks, RC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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