Supreme Court Broadens Statue of Limitations for Disparate-Impact Cases Under Title VII

In a recent landmark decision significantly increasing risk and liability for employers with respect to policies and practices that may have a disparate-impact on minorities, the United States Supreme Court held that the time within which plaintiffs may file disparate-impact claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (“Title VII”), is not limited to the first 300 days following the employer's adoption of the challenged policy. In Lewis v. City of Chicago, No. 08-974 (U.S. May 24, 2010), the Court was called upon to decide whether the limitations period for filing a charge of discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) begins to run immediately after an employer originally adopts an employment practice that disparately impacts African Americans, or whether the limitations period begins each time the employer uses and relies on the discriminatory practice in question. In a unanimous decision, the Court held that the limitations period is effectively extended by the employer's subsequent use and reliance on the challenged policy. In other words, an actionable claim arises each time the employer invokes the offending policy. The practical effect of the Court's decision is that employers may potentially be subject to timely disparate-impact claims several years after a previously unchallenged, long-standing policy was implemented.