What to do if there is a dispute in the training contract for trainees
Xu Chuanhan
With the increase in variety shows, many young people dream of becoming trainees and becoming the idols of the new generation of entertainment industry through their debut.
Education and training institutions that set up special courses have emerged, specializing in training trainees, and then pushing them to talent shows or film and television crews. From recruitment, training to debut, it has become an industry chain.
However, is the training debut really as “good” as promised when the contract was signed?
What are the legal issues involved in the performance of the contract and what to do if there is a dispute?
Question 1
What should I do if the content of the contract is not clear and the training effect cannot be guaranteed?
Article 563 of the Civil Code of my country stipulates several situations in which the parties can terminate the contract. They are that the purpose of the contract cannot be achieved due to force majeure; before the expiration of the performance period, one of the parties clearly expresses or indicates by their own actions that they will not perform Debt; one party delays the performance of the main debt and fails to perform it within a reasonable time after being urged; one of the parties delays the performance of the debt or has other breaches of the contract that makes it impossible to achieve the purpose of the contract; other circumstances stipulated by the law.
For a non-fixed contract with debts that continue to be performed, the parties can terminate the contract at any time, but they should notify the other party before a reasonable period of time.
Liu signed a "trainee training agreement" with an entertainment company, which stipulated that Liu would study 14 courses including styling design, public image shaping, physical fitness, public performance rehearsal, artistic and moral cultivation, and media response skills.
But after Liu became a trainee, he only participated in physical fitness, vocal music and dance courses, and the study time was less than the agreed time. Liu went to the court to request the cancellation of the agreement with the company and the refund of the fee.
The entertainment company argued that the fourteen courses agreed in the agreement are arranged in order and priority. They are arranged based on Liu's assessment and promotion. Liu cannot participate in all courses at this stage.
The court found that the entertainment company divided students into three levels: B, A, and S. Students at different levels can choose different courses. Only students who reach B3 level can all fourteen courses be opened and completed.
The entertainment company divides trainees into multiple levels. Each level corresponds to different learning content. Only through the assessment can they be promoted. However, the company is unable to clarify the training cycle for each level and the time schedule for the upgrade assessment. Whether or not the content of 14 courses has been studied during the training period is in a state of uncertainty.
In other words, Liu could not be sure whether the purpose of the contract could be achieved, and the improper curriculum setting of the entertainment company should be regarded as not fulfilling the contract obligations in place, and Liu had the right to request the termination of the contract.
Regarding the issue of refund of fees, Article 577 of the Civil Code stipulates that if one of the parties fails to perform their contractual obligations or does not comply with the agreement in performing their contractual obligations, it shall be liable for breach of contract such as continued performance, remedial measures, or compensation for losses.
It can be seen that, due to the breach of contract by the entertainment company's failure to fulfill the contract obligations, the court finally ruled that both parties rescind the contract, and based on Liu's actual participation in the training, the entertainment company was sentenced to refund part of the fees.
Question 2
Encountered with "exclusive right of interpretation", can students request a refund for cancellation of the contract?
In practice, like Liu above, there are not a few students who think there are problems with the curriculum of training institutions. When trying to communicate with training institutions, many training institutions will plausibly point out that the training agreement signed by both parties clearly stipulates that “the institution has the right to follow It gives trainees the regular assessment and rating results to carry out follow-up work; the organization has the right to unilaterally decide the course content, learning plan and development direction of the trainees." In other words, education and training institutions usually defend themselves with the "exclusive right of interpretation". , Refused to adjust the course.
At this time, can students request to terminate the contract and refund the fees?
Usually, training institutions use format contracts when signing contracts with trainees. The text of the contract is slightly different. The training period and costs are usually adjusted according to the situation of different trainees. However, the establishment of liability for breach of contract and the overall planning of the training institution The agreement on rights and obligations such as arranging courses is completely consistent.
Article 496 of the Civil Code stipulates that standard clauses are clauses that are drawn up in advance by the parties for repeated use and have not been negotiated with the other party when the contract is concluded.
Where standard terms are used to conclude a contract, the party providing the standard terms shall determine the rights and obligations between the parties in accordance with the principle of fairness, and adopt a reasonable method to remind the other party to pay attention to the terms that have a major interest in the other party, such as exempting or mitigating its responsibilities. The requirements of this clause shall be explained.
If the party providing the standard terms fails to perform its obligation of prompting or explaining, causing the other party to fail to pay attention to or understand the terms that are of great interest to it, the other party may claim that the terms do not become the content of the contract.
That is to say, for the "pre-drawn and repeated use clauses", on the one hand, students should carefully read the content of the contract when signing the contract, and there is an asymmetric agreement on rights and obligations, and communicate with the organization in a timely manner to clarify the specific meaning of the clauses , To avoid discovering that the actual situation is inconsistent with what you expected during the performance; on the other hand, the training organization should also do a good job of explaining the contract when signing the contract, especially for the standard clauses, and must perform sufficient prompts or explanations. "Practice Training Agreement" "The teaching and curriculum settings are different from the compulsory education or secondary and higher education required by the state. It does not require the use of unified teaching materials, and the teaching content should also be communicated with the students and determined after the students' consent.
The Civil Code also stipulates that if the party providing the standard clause unreasonably exempts or mitigates its liability, aggravates the other party's liability, or restricts the other party's main rights, the clause is invalid.
As a training institution, the overall arrangement of the students' learning courses is indeed a need for teaching practice, but this is not a reason for refusing to fully perform the contractual obligations.
The main purpose of the trainees signing the contract is to learn all the courses agreed in the agreement. Correspondingly, the main contractual obligation of the training institution is to provide all the courses for the trainees to learn.
Without prior communication, notification and negotiation with the trainees, the expressions in the agreement, such as "Party A shall be responsible for the overall arrangement of the course, and Party B shall comply with it" and "Party A has the exclusive right to interpret the contents of this agreement" are all standard clauses and are invalid Agreed.
However, it should be noted that part of the contract is invalid and does not affect the effectiveness of other parts. Improper curriculum setting of the training institution should be regarded as a situation where the performance of the contract obligations is not in place. The trainees still have the right to request the termination of the contract and refund the remaining fees.
Question 3
How can students defend their rights if the deposit is not refunded?
The "Formal Contract for Trainees" signed between Wang and a cultural communication company stipulates that the company is obliged to provide Wang with the best domestic teachers and self-study venues, and is responsible for the publication of his works, performance training, performance activities, and overall agency matters .
On the day when the contract was signed, Wang paid a deposit of 50,000 yuan to the company’s supervisor Teng, and the company agreed to return the amount after the contract expires.
After the performance of the contract for a period of time, the company terminated the relevant training for Wang on the grounds of mismanagement and no longer provided accommodation.
Wang asked the company to return the mortgage, but the company argued that the mortgage was collected by Teng and had nothing to do with the company.
But at this time Teng has long disappeared. In this case, how should Wang defend his rights?
The contract signed by Wang and the company is an expression of the true intentions of both parties, does not violate the mandatory provisions of laws and administrative regulations, is legal and effective, and both parties should abide by it.
The company's refusal to perform the contract constituted a breach of contract.
During the litigation, the court was unable to effectively serve the litigation documents to Teng by telephone, mail, etc. According to the law, the court may serve by public notice, and at the same time, it was found that the company had issued a receipt for the mortgage, and the contract is now Unable to continue to perform, Wang has the right to request the company to refund the deposit.
In practice, the management of some education and training institutions is chaotic, and payment collection lacks a complete financial management system. In the process of contract performance, students need to keep relevant evidence to protect their legitimate rights and interests.
my country's Civil Procedure Law provides for a variety of methods for the service of litigation documents. Even if the company is closed and ran away, students can still sue to the court, and the court will adopt corresponding service methods according to the situation. .
Question 4
It is easy to pay and it is difficult to refund, what should consumers do if they don't get the money back?
The above-mentioned cases all have different reasons for the failure of the contract to be performed, and they all face the same refund problem in the end.
It is difficult to refund fees, which is also the "hardest hit area" in the education and training contract. Some education and training institutions refuse to refund under the terms of "non-refundable and non-transferable courses" stipulated in the contract.
There are two main reasons for the difficulty of refunding fees for off-campus training institutions. One is the unreasonable contract terms, and the other is the pre-charging business model adopted.
As far as contract terms are concerned, education and training institutions usually impose strict restrictions on the refund time and conditions in the contract, or directly stipulate that "fees are not refundable", which is also suspected of standard terms.
It should be noted that if the education and training institution and the trainees reach an agreement after the negotiation of the refund, and the training institution has fulfilled the obligation of prompting and explaining, both parties need to perform in accordance with the agreement. This clause is not necessarily an invalid standard clause.
As far as the pre-charging business model is concerned, as early as 2018, the "Opinions of the General Office of the State Council on Regulating the Development of Off-campus Training Institutions" stipulated that "No one-time fee shall be charged for a period of more than 3 months." May 18, 2021, The notice issued by Beijing Municipality of "Administrative Measures for Pre-charging of Off-campus Training Institutions for Subjects (for Trial Implementation)" clearly stipulates that "If a student requests a refund before the start of the course, the institution will, in principle, refund all fees through the original channel within 5 days. If a student requests a refund after the course starts, the corresponding fee shall be deducted according to the proportion of the completed class hours, and the remaining fees shall be refunded in a lump sum according to the original channel within 15 days in principle. Unless otherwise agreed in the contract terms and does not violate the above refund principle "In addition, the management measures also make relevant provisions on fee intervals, fee supervision, and fee refund channels.
With the refinement and clarification of the policy, the difficulty of refunding fees will gradually be resolved.
Under the premise of complying with laws and regulations, education and training institutions enjoy certain teaching autonomy, management rights to students, and the right to collect tuition fees. At the same time, they also have the obligation to provide education and training courses in accordance with the contract.
Educated persons have the right to receive education and training, and at the same time have the obligation to pay fees, abide by rules and regulations, and cooperate with institutions to carry out education and training activities.
In practice, the two parties are prone to disputes due to the broad content of the contract and the chaotic management of education and training institutions.
For education and training institutions, on the one hand, it is necessary to clarify the content of the contract, optimize the curriculum, strengthen communication with the students, and ensure a good training effect; as an educated person, you should carefully consider the content of the contract and carefully sign the contract, which involves class hours, tuition, and training. Contract terms such as content and refunds must be carefully reviewed, and even if the agreement or promise reached orally, it must be implemented in writing.
For the conditions and requirements for refunds, supplementary clauses can be adopted to try to avoid obstacles when refunds occur.
At the same time, both parties should pay attention to keeping the relevant evidence of their fulfillment of obligations and communication, and can keep relevant recordings, videos, WeChat records, etc., to avoid being disadvantaged in litigation due to lack of evidence.
In addition, it is necessary to understand the brand, reputation, scale, teachers, teaching facilities, and service quality of the training institution in many aspects, and conduct on-site inspections of the teaching venues.
Don't believe in advertising easily when you sign up, and don't blindly follow the trend.
(Author's unit: People's Court of Chaoyang District, Beijing)