In his summary judgment ruling in favor of B&H, Judge Chhabria noted that as students must log hundreds of hours of clinical work to qualify for cosmetology or hair design licenses in Nevada and California, the three plaintiffs did not present sufficient evidence to counter B&H’s assertion that by doing things such as cutting the hair or doing the nails of customers who paid a fee to the company for the services, they were getting an education in a realistic environment.

"The evidence provided by the plaintiffs is so meager and vague that it would not allow a reasonable jury to conclude that the schools subordinated the educational function of the clinics in favor of making money," Judge Chhabria wrote.

Julie A. Vogelzang, an attorney representing B&H, told Law360 on Tuesday that she hopes Judge Chhabria’s ruling "sends a strong message" to attorneys representing students in at least a dozen similar lawsuits filed throughout the country.

"We are delighted by the ruling and feel it is a vindication for B&H Education and other schools, whether private or public, which provide hands-on learning experiences for students in the form of practicing their developing skills on the public," Vogelzang said.

Bryan Schwartz, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, told Law360 on Tuesday that by performing services on paying members of the public, selling Marinello’s products, cleaning the salon and performing receptionist duties, his clients helped churn major revenues for Marinello, "all without getting paid a dime."

"Our clients and those they are seeking to represent were taken advantage of — and we intend to keep fighting this issue as long as is necessary to expose this scheme," Schwartz said.

Representing the plaintiffs are Bryan Schwartz and Adetunji Olude of Bryan Schwartz Law, David A. Lowe, Chaya M. Mandelbaum and Michelle G. Lee of Rudy Exelrod Zieff & Lowe LLP and Leon Greenberg and Dana Sniegocki of the Law Office of Leon Greenberg.

Representing B&H are Julie A. Vogelzang, Edward M. Cramp and Courtney L. Baird of Duane Morris LLP.

The case is Benjamin et al. v. B&H Education Inc. et al., case number 3:13-cv-04993, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.