Discrimination Claims Defense for California Employers — CRD, EEOC & Civil Litigation

Most California discrimination claims begin administratively rather than in court. An employee files a charge with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD, formerly the DFEH) or the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Because California and federal agencies work-share, a single filing is often dual-filed with both.

After a charge is filed, the employer typically receives notice and a request for a position statement. The agency may offer mediation, request documents and personnel files, interview witnesses, and issue findings. In many California cases the employee simply requests an immediate right-to-sue notice, which closes the administrative file and opens a one-year window to sue in Superior Court under FEHA.

The position statement is the single most consequential document most employers file. It becomes part of the record, it is generally provided to the complaining employee, and inconsistencies between it and later deposition testimony are exactly what plaintiff's counsel looks for. Employers who submit a quick, unreviewed narrative often create the credibility problem that drives settlement value up later.

• 1.Issue a litigation hold. Suspend routine deletion of email, text messages, HRIS records, security footage, and Slack or Teams history relating to the employee and the decision-makers.
• 2.Do not retaliate. Adverse action after a complaint - even a schedule change or exclusion from a meeting - frequently becomes a stronger claim than the underlying allegation.
• 3.Calendar the deadline. Position statements are usually due within weeks. Extensions are possible but must be requested, not assumed.
• 4.Assemble the file before writing. Personnel file, performance history, discipline records, comparator data, policy acknowledgments, and the complete decision timeline.
• 5.Decide who investigates. If the allegations involve leadership or the matter is likely to be litigated, use an independent attorney-investigator rather than internal HR.
• 6.Evaluate exposure early. FEHA exposure includes back pay, front pay, emotional distress damages, punitive damages, and the plaintiff's attorney fees - the fee award often exceeds the damages.

California's Fair Employment and Housing Act is broader than federal law. It covers employers with five or more employees (one or more for harassment claims), protects a longer list of characteristics, and applies a plaintiff-friendly standard on many issues. Federal statutes - Title VII, the ADA, and the ADEA - apply in parallel with different thresholds and damage caps.

Successful defenses generally turn on documentation rather than argument. Legitimate, non-discriminatory business reasons applied consistently across comparable employees; a documented interactive process in disability and accommodation matters; contemporaneous performance records; a prompt and thorough response to any internal complaint; and evidence that the same decision would have been made regardless of the protected characteristic.

We also defend the claims that commonly travel alongside discrimination allegations - retaliation, wrongful termination in violation of public policy, failure to prevent harassment, wage and hour claims, and PAGA representative actions.