(A) Whenever it appears to the commission that any person is or has been violating any provisions of this chapter or the regulations promulgated hereunder, the commission shall request the Attorney General, the solicitor, or any appropriate official having jurisdiction in the county in which the nonpublic educational institution or its agent is located, to bring a civil action to restrain that person from the violation, and for other appropriate relief. The action may be brought in the court of common pleas in the county in which the person resides, has his principal place of business, or conducts or transacts business. The courts may issue orders and injunctions to restrain and prevent violations of this chapter, and these orders and injunctions must be issued without bond.

(B) If a court finds that any person is wilfully violating or has wilfully violated this chapter, the commission, upon petitioning the court, may recover a civil penalty not exceeding five thousand dollars for each violation. Each degree, diploma, or certificate granted by an institution without the required license is a separate violation and each student enrolled by an agent is a separate violation for purposes of this section.

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Terms Used In South Carolina Code 59-58-130

  • Commission: means the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education. See South Carolina Code 59-58-20
  • Degree: includes , but is not limited to, any academic credential or designation not less than, but including associate, bachelor, master, doctor, or fellow, whether earned or honorary, which signifies, purports, or is generally taken to signify partial or satisfactory completion of the requirements of an academic, occupational, business, or other program of study beyond the secondary school level. See South Carolina Code 59-58-20
  • Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • License: means an agency permit, approval, or some similar form of written permission. See South Carolina Code 59-58-20
  • Nonpublic educational institution: includes , but is not limited to, any educational entity operating or soliciting in South Carolina and is not owned or operated in whole or in part by the State of South Carolina offering resident or correspondence courses beyond the secondary school level to students upon the payment of tuition or fees. See South Carolina Code 59-58-20
  • Person: means any individual, firm, partnership, association, organization, corporation, trust, or other legal entity or combination of the above. See South Carolina Code 59-58-20
  • solicitor: means a person who, for remuneration, enrolls or seeks to enroll, away from the nonpublic educational institution's premises, a resident of South Carolina in courses or programs of instruction or study offered by the nonpublic educational institution. See South Carolina Code 59-58-20

(C) The commission may bring a civil action against a person who violates the terms of an injunction issued under this section for a civil penalty of not more than fifteen thousand dollars. For purposes of this section, the court of common pleas issuing an injunction shall retain jurisdiction, and the cause may be continued and in these cases the commission may petition for recovery of civil penalties.

(D) For purposes of this section, a wilful violation occurs when the person committing the violation knew or should have known that his conduct was a violation of this chapter.

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