A student who claimed he was promised a refund for a ski team weekend that he paid for, but did not attend, will finally receive one, as the Union Judiciary ruled in his favor in their first case of the academic year, Jeff Stein v. Ski Team.The unanimous decision, which was released by Judiciary Chief Justice Mark Samburg '07 late Monday night, following a hearing held last Tuesday, resolves a longstanding dispute between Jeff Stein '07 and ski team leaders.

Stein claimed the Ski Team owed him $300 out of the $400 that he paid for a trip in November 2005. The team refunded him $100, but Stein said he was promised the remaining money.

The UJ found former co-captain Josh Silverstein's '06 e-mail telling Stein that he would be repaid the money to be "a promise on behalf of the club as a whole to repay Mr. Stein his $300."

The trial was marked by informality as the hearing was conducted, which the UJ defended in its decision.

"The current members of the UJ firmly believe that choosing to conduct our business as a group of students aimed at resolving disagreements has provided all parties with a far better outcome than would have been attained through legal formalities," the decision read. "We hope that future Union Judiciaries will follow this example."

Ski Team Co-Captain Robbie Schwartz '08 said it was not right to "throw out all legal procedures and just disregard the Union Judiciary constitution."

But Stein said he appreciated the UJ's informal method of conducting itself. "I thought [the UJ] was very fair. . I completely agree with [their informality] and that's how they conducted the case, and it went well."

In order to ensure that Stein actually receives the money, the UJ blocked the team from obtaining funds for future programming until Stein is paid.

The court encouraged the parties to meet with the Union as well as Budget Director for Students and Enrollment Keenyn McFarlane in order to find ways to raise the money.

Schwartz said the team would find a way to fulfill the verdict.

The UJ encouraged the Ski Team to consider hosting fundraisers to make up for its debt, as it acknowledged the difficulty of the money actually being transferred from the Ski Team to Stein.

While the UJ encouraged Stein and the Ski Team to reach a satisfactory agreement, it did strongly maintain that the Ski Team was ultimately responsible for the money owed to Stein.

"If clubs were not to be held responsible for debts incurred in previous years, club behavior at Brandeis would immediately lose any level of fiscal responsibility or accountability," the decision read.

Samburg could not be reached for comment Monday night.