Legal Process Paper

Introduction

Based on the proposed scenario, if John, the employee of the private sector organization wants to file a discrimination complaint, there are specific procedures, which need to be taken. This procedure has been designed to lead, instruct, and protect both the employee and the employer from unnecessary litigation or the lack thereof.

Discrimination Complaint and Civil Litigation Processes from the

EEOC to the U.S. Supreme Court

In the Proposed scenario, John must begin the civil litigation process at the beginning with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). This agency has designed laws that govern the employers and employee procedures when a complaint is issued. “The EEOC is now the lead agency for handling issues of job discrimination and deals with most matters of employment discrimination arising under federal laws, including age and disability.” (Bennett-Alexander et al, 2004) The EEOC has designed a specific procedure for bringing a claim within their boundaries and this procedure will be discussed below.

The first step is for the employee to decide to take action. This is often the hardest step. Most legitimate events go un-noticed and un-mentioned. Once an employee has made the decision to report an issue, he or she must file an official complaint with the EEOC office. Once an official complaint is filed the EEOC takes over for the duration of the case, unless no remedy can be found. In this scenario the case will move to the state level and if necessary, the Supreme Court.

The EEOC has specific steps, which they take once a complaint is filed. They want to take every step in order to avoid a legal encounter. Their first step is to notify the employer who has been accused of discrimination. Mediation is the next step and if applicable will consist of two phases; however, must be agreed to by both parties. In the first phase of this step the EEOC steps away from the scenario after referring a mediator and allows the mediator to attempt to assist in reaching a binding agreement. If the mediation process is not successful the EEOC will proceed with a second phase of mediation by personally scheduling a meeting where both parties and the EEOC are present. In this phase the EEOC will again attempt to resolve the respective differences. If this meeting is successful, an agreement will be reached and the claim will end. If there is no agreement reached the EEOC will execute a full investigation to determine if there is cause or no cause.

An employee does not have the right-to-sue an employer unless they are notified that no reasonable cause was found and a right-to-sue letter is received. “After you receive your right-to-sue letter from the EEOC, you generally have only 90 days to file a lawsuit in federal court. Some state agencies have longer time limits and may allow you to wait as long as a year after receiving your right to sue letter to sue under state law.” (Dahut, 2001) If reasonable cause is found the EEOC will send notification to the employer the details of finding cause and will propose a probable remedy to the scenario. If the employer does not agree with the probable remedy, he or she has the option to appeal the decision