"Today’s swift and decisive action from the highest court should end, once and for all, any ongoing debate about the legitimacy of this settlement," Eileen Connor, president and director of the Project on Predatory Student Lending (PPSL), said in a statement after the high court’s decision.

“Today’s swift and decisive action from the highest court should end, once and for all, any ongoing debate about the legitimacy of this settlement,” Project on Predatory Student Lending President and Director Eileen Connor told CNBC.

“The schools set their sails to catch political headwinds by falsely equating the settlement of long-standing and hard-fought litigation with a completely distinct program of broad-based debt cancellation that is currently under review by the Supreme Court,” said Eileen Connor, president and director of the Project on Predatory Student Lending, in a statement.

“Today’s swift and decisive action from the highest court should end, once and for all, any ongoing debate about the legitimacy of this settlement,” said Eileen Connor, president and director of the Project on Predatory Student Lending.

"In 2019, the Project on Predatory Student Lending, on behalf of borrowers who believed they were defrauded by the schools they attended, filed a lawsuit — now known as Sweet vs. Cardona — over stalled borrower defense claims, which are claims borrowers can file to get their debt discharged if they can prove they were defrauded by their school.”

“This means that settlement relief for those who attended the three intervening schools — American National University, Everglades College/Keiser University, and Lincoln Tech – can proceed,” the PPSL update stated. “At this time, the Department of Education can move forward with relief for all class members.”

“On March 29, 2023, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the intervenor entities’ motion for a stay pending appeal,” said the Project on Predatory Student Lending, the organization representing the class of student loan borrowers, in an update on its website. “This means that settlement relief for those who attended the three intervening schools – American National University, Everglades College/Keiser University, and Lincoln Tech – can proceed. At this time, the Department of Education can move forward with relief for all class members.“

“The Sweet v. Cardona settlement is distinct from the ongoing legal battle over Biden’s separate one-time student loan forgiveness initiative. The Supreme Court is expected to make a decision on that plan this summer. The Project on Predatory Student Lending has set up a detailed informational website for those interested in learning more about who qualifies for student loan forgiveness and other relief under the Sweet v. Cardona settlement.”