Filing a Discrimination Lawsuit John, Term Paper

To do so, John needs to seek a Notice of Right-to-Sue from the EEOC. This document serves as proof that John filed a complaint with the EEOC, as required by the underlying statutes, and serves as his means of entry into the court system (See generally, EEOC, Filing a lawsuit, 2010).

Even though the laws governing employment discrimination are federal laws, John can file his lawsuit in state court or federal court, assuming that state or local laws also prohibit such discrimination. Frequently, at that stage, John's employer is going to seek removal of the case to the federal system, because federal judges are considered more likely to grant summary judgment in favor of employer-defendants than state-court judges are. Employers are able to receive removal because federal courts have jurisdiction over questions of federal law. Therefore, John's lawsuit might proceed in the federal or state court system.

If John's lawsuit proceeds in the state court system, the process will be relatively straightforward. Depending on John's location, the state courts may have different labels; but each of the states has three levels of courts. The first level is the trial court, and this is the court of origination. It is at the trial-court level where John will file his complaint. Prior to going to trial in the trial court, the parties will be subjected to different rules and regulations. For example, they will probably have to participate in discovery, which involves giving evidence in support of their claims to the other side, in order to prevent surprise at trial. In addition, many states have mandatory mediation, which, unlike the EEOC's mediation process, does require the parties to attend mediation, though they are not required to reach an agreement. Then, the parties go to trial and the judge renders a decision in favor of one of the parties. The party who has not prevailed has the right to appeal the decision to the state appellate courts, whose decision can be appealed to the state supreme court level. A party who is dissatisfied with the decision of the state supreme court can appeal directly to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the U.S. Supreme Court has discretion whether or not it will hear the appeal.

If John's lawsuit is started in or removed to the federal system, the process is slightly different. The lawsuit begins in one of the U.S. District Courts, which are the trial courts in the federal system. Unhappy parties can appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the applicable district. Finally, appeals can go to the U.S. Supreme Court, which has discretion whether or not to hear the appeal.

References

United States Courts. (2010). Federal Courts structure. Retrieved from http://www.uscourts.

gov/FederalCourts/UnderstandingtheFederalCourts/FederalCourtsStructure.aspx

United States Courts. (2010). Jurisdiction of the Federal Courts. Retrieved from http://www.uscourts.gov/FederalCourts/UnderstandingtheFederalCourts/Jurisdiction.aspx

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2010). Filing a charge of discrimination.

Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/employees/charge.cfm

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2010). Filing a lawsuit.

http://www.eeoc.gov/employees/lawsuit.cfm

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2010). How to file a charge of employment discrimination. Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/employees/howtofile.cfm

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2010). Mediation. Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/employees/mediation.cfm

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2010). Resolving a charge. Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/employers/resolving.cfm