A man once implicated in the “Varsity Blues” scandal is appealing a judge’s dismissal this summer of the remaining two claims in a lawsuit filed against USC, saying the judge erred in finding that the suit was filed too late.
Massachusetts businessman John Wilson and his wife, Leslie Q. Wilson, filed the appeal on Wednesday and it will eventually be heard by a three-justice panel of the Second District Court of Appeal.
The couple sued the university in September 2024, seeking the return of a $100,000 donation he made in connection with their son Johnny’s admission, plus $75 million to compensate them for alleged fraud and deceit by the university.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Holly J. Fujie initially dismissed the couple’s cause of action for negligent misrepresentation. Then, on July 29, she tossed the leftover two claims for fraud and intentional misrepresentation, saying they violated the statute of limitations. The judge was not convinced by the Wilson attorneys’ argument that they did not learn of misrepresentations made to them until Sept. 21, 2021.
“Upon review of the facts alleged in the (complaint) and the judicially noticeable matters before the court, plaintiffs have not plausibly alleged that they were not on notice … of facts and circumstances which would have made a reasonable person suspicious of USC’s alleged fraud,” the judge wrote.
Fujie had also found that the negligent misrepresentation claim violated the statute of limitations.
William “Rick” Singer allegedly led the “Varsity Blues” scandal by operating a college admissions consulting company and a fraudulent charity, then working with upscale families to get their children into top schools, in part through the manipulation of SAT and ACT score results.
In their court papers, the Wilsons’ attorneys alleged that key USC figures, including head water polo coach Jovan Vavic, Assistant Athletic Director Alex Garfio and Associate Athletic Director Ron Orr, assured the Wilsons that their donation was legitimate and conformed to university policies.
But in their court papers, USC attorneys contended that in 2014, John Wilson conspired with Singer and Vavic to convince USC’s admission office into admitting John Wilson’s son “by falsely representing Johnny’s athletic ability.”
A jury convicted John Wilson in 2021 of filing a false tax return, bribery and fraud. He appealed and an appellate court dismissed all but the tax conviction finding that prosecutors had not proven an overarching conspiracy and identified significant evidentiary issues during the trial.
The Wilsons actually thought they donated $220,000 to USC but $120,000 was embezzled by Singer, the Wilsons’ lawyers alleged in their pleadings.
John Wilson is a former executive at Gap and Staples. In July, a federal judge allowed the 64-year-old Singer to return to college consulting, but he must disclose his criminal past to potential clients.