Sewanee Mold Lawsuit: $35M Claims Over Johnson Hall Exposure

Eleven current and former students at Sewanee: The University of the South are suing the school for more than $35 million, alleging that toxic mold in a freshman dormitory called Johnson Hall made them seriously ill and that administrators knew about the problem for years before acting. The Sewanee mold lawsuit was filed September 23, 2025, in Franklin County Circuit Court in Tennessee, and an amended complaint on October 3, 2025, added four more plaintiffs to the original seven.¹²

The case is styled Elizabeth Bandy, et al., v. Sewanee, University of the South, Case No. 2025-CV-179. The amended complaint runs 67 pages and contains nearly 200 separate allegations.³ It is not a class action; each named student and family brings individual claims.

What Students Say Happened in Johnson Hall

Johnson Hall houses primarily first-year students. The complaint describes the building as “long known for its infestation with toxic mold.” The earliest documented incident in the record dates to January 2024, when two students reported mold in a first-floor room and had to be moved out; a student newspaper opinion piece the following month said the mold had been present for weeks before anyone acted.⁴³

When a new class of freshmen moved in for fall 2024, complaints accelerated. Students reported visible mold on floors, walls, and under beds by late September, along with a steady stream of illness.⁵ According to the lawsuit, when parents pressed the administration for answers, staff blamed the students, telling them they had left windows open in the rain or needed to clean their rooms.¹ The complaint alleges that the university’s Director of Risk Management, Chris Smith, dismissed visible mold as “just dirt” and attributed high humidity to an open window.⁴

The October 2024 Testing and Evacuation

After sustained pressure from families, the university ordered a professional inspection in early October 2024. Tennessee Mold Inspectors found that Penicillium/Aspergillus mold levels in the room shared by plaintiffs Elizabeth Bandy and Hollyn Fox were 2,264 times higher than outdoor levels, and concluded the space was “not safe for human occupation.” All 56 Johnson Hall residents were evacuated.⁴³

In meetings with displaced students and their parents, Provost Scott Wilson attributed the outbreak to three converging factors: unusually heavy rainfall from a hurricane remnant, a partially blocked air duct that pulled damp air into the building, and a malfunctioning remote humidity sensor that failed to alert facilities as moisture levels climbed.⁴ The lawsuit rejects that account, contending that the problem long predated those events.

Reported Health Effects

The plaintiffs describe a wide range of symptoms they attribute to the mold. Respiratory complaints were most common: coughing, congestion, shortness of breath, and worsening asthma. Illness was widespread enough that students nicknamed the persistent hack the “Johnson Cough.”⁶ Students also reported nosebleeds, headaches, fatigue, lightheadedness, fever, sleeplessness, anxiety, and sweating.⁷

Some residents described more severe symptoms, including brain fog so bad they could not form sentences, fainting spells, sleep paralysis, and deep lung congestion. Some students visited emergency rooms, and at least one, Liza Bandy, had to leave campus for several weeks to recover at home.⁵ The lawsuit alleges that university health services dismissed many of these complaints as allergies.⁴

What the Lawsuit Seeks

The complaint seeks more than $35 million in total damages, plus attorneys’ fees and court costs. The original seven-plaintiff filing sought more than $20 million; the figure rose when four additional students joined.⁸⁴ The relief requested breaks down into three categories:

Compensatory damages covering past and future medical costs, lost wages, moving expenses, room and board, loss of personal property, physical pain, emotional distress, and diminished quality of life.
Punitive damages of at least $500,000, based on allegations of intentional, reckless, and fraudulent conduct.
Statutory damages under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act, which can include treble damages and attorney fees.⁸

The causes of action include negligence, gross negligence, willful and wanton conduct, negligent hiring and supervision, negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract, and violations of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act.¹ Named defendants are the University of the South and five unnamed corporate entities listed as “XYZ Corporation/Company 1-5.”

Who Represents the Plaintiffs

Lead counsel is Just Well Law, an Austin, Texas firm that focuses on environmental toxin litigation, working with Andy Peters Davis of Davis & Davis in Winchester, Tennessee as local counsel. Attorneys Jessica L. Yaeger and Christopher A. LaCour appear alongside founder Kristina Baehr for Just Well Law.⁷¹

In a statement issued with the filing, Baehr said “Sewanee administrators long knew or should have known that these dorm rooms were unsafe for human habitation” and that “reports of pervasive toxic mold on campus are not a recent concern but have been consistent part of student life.”⁹ Just Well Law’s website has indicated since February 2025 that the firm is accepting new clients related to Sewanee housing conditions, so additional plaintiffs may still join.³

Sewanee’s Response

The university has said little publicly. Spokesperson Parker Oliver told reporters shortly after the filing that Sewanee “was aware of the complaint but had not reviewed it and did not comment on pending litigation.”³ Provost Scott Wilson told the Sewanee Messenger the university would “closely review the claims” and expressed confidence that “the facts in this matter demonstrate our deep commitment to the well-being of our students, including to ensuring the health and safety of our residence halls.”⁴

Where Johnson Hall Stands Now

Displaced students moved into temporary housing after the October 2024 evacuation and then into a partially renovated McCrady Hall for the rest of the fall semester. The university brought in remediation specialists, retested the air through an outside firm, Marion Environmental, and reopened Johnson Hall for student occupancy in January 2025.¹⁰⁴ The university offered to cover documented medical expenses and documented travel costs for parents who helped their children move, but declined to provide broader compensation for the disruption.¹¹ The plaintiffs consider that response inadequate, and the lawsuit followed several months later.

1
Chattanooga Times Free Press. Sewanee Students File $35M Suit Over Toxic Mold in Dorms
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Thunder 1320. Four Students and Former Students Join Lawsuit Against Sewanee
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The Sewanee Purple. Understanding the Johnson Lawsuit
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Sewanee Messenger. Dorm Mold: Nightmare for Students and University
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The Sewanee Purple. Homelessness, Helplessness, Health Scares: The Story of the Johnson Refugees
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WSMV. Students Sue TN University in $35 Million Claim Mold in Dorms Caused Illness
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PR Newswire. Just Well Law PLLC: Sickened Sewanee Students Sue University of the South Over Toxic Mold
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WSMV. More Students Join $35 Million Lawsuit Against University of the South Over Dorm Mold
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WDEF. Lawsuit Filed Against Sewanee the University of the South Over Mold in Dorms
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The Sewanee Purple. Mold Gone: An Update on Johnson Hall
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The Sewanee Purple. School of Mold Episode II: Mold Strikes Back