CRD Complaint (formerly a DFEH Complaint) – 5 Steps to Bringing a Successful One

Posted on February 20, 2023

Victims of discrimination or harassment in the California workplace can file a complaint with the Civil Rights Department (CRD), formerly known as the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). Five key steps to a successful complaint are:

1. hiring a lawyer,
2. gathering evidence,
3. determining whether the CRD is the appropriate agency,
4. engaging in the investigation, and
5. negotiating a satisfactory resolution or filing a lawsuit.

1. Hire an employment lawyer

One of the most important aspects of filing a successful DFEH or CRD complaint is to get legal help. Hopefully, you will never have had to file a complaint before because you were never the victim of workplace discrimination. Unfortunately, this means that the process will be new and unfamiliar to you.

Employment attorneys help their clients file discrimination complaints with the CRD every day. They are used to the process and are aware of the potential difficulties and pitfalls that you will need to avoid in order to succeed. They will also know what evidence you will need for your particular case and how to gather it.

Establishing an attorney-client relationship with a lawyer from an employment discrimination law firm is essential. Getting his or her legal advice is the best way to increase your chances of success.

2. Gather evidence to support your discrimination complaint

Before filing a pre-complaint inquiry with the CRD or DFEH, you will need to gather evidence that backs up your complaint. While you can supplement your complaint with new facts after you first file it, investigators will take your complaint more seriously if it is strong from the outset.

The pertinent evidence will depend on the nature of your complaint. If you are filing a complaint based on workplace discrimination, the evidence can be:

• your status in a protected class,
• documentation of workplace bullying that targets your protected trait,
• reductions in pay or work responsibilities,
• exclusion from meetings or decision making,
• a refusal to provide a reasonable accommodation for your disability or condition,
• sudden and drastic changes in performance reviews, and/or
• other coworkers in your protected class facing similar difficulties.

If your DFEH/CRD claim is based on retaliation, though, the evidence can be different:

• proof that you engaged in legally protected activity,
• evidence that you have suffered an adverse employment action, such as workplace discipline or a loss in benefits, and
• signs that the workplace setback is connected to your activities.

An attorney can help you understand what evidence is worth gathering. They can also suggest ways of collecting it in a sensitive workplace environment.

3. Decide whether the CRD/DFEH is the correct venue

Depending on the nature of your complaint, you may have options on where to file it. You may be able to file:

• a complaint under state law with the CRD,
• a complaint under federal law with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), or
• a lawsuit in state or federal court.

The CRD accepts complaints that allege violations of the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). Those violations can take the form of workplace:

• retaliation,
• harassment, or
• [1]

The EEOC accepts complaints that allege violations of Title VII of the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964. These violations generally mirror those that violate the California FEHA. While the legal protections of the federal Title VII law are extremely similar to those provided by the state FEHA, there are important differences.

In order to file a lawsuit, though, complainants generally have to exhaust their administrative remedies, first. This generally means that you have to file your claim with the EEOC or CRD before filing a lawsuit.[2] Only after obtaining a right to sue letter from the agency can you file the lawsuit in court. There are limited exceptions to this requirement, though.

4. Participate in the investigation

Once you have filed a pre-complaint inquiry with the CRD, an investigation will commence.

Soon after submitting your complaint, you will be contacted by an investigator. They will schedule an intake interview with you.[3] This interview generally happens over the phone. The investigator will ask you questions about your situation and what happened. Any evidence that was not included in the complaint should be presented at this point.

The investigator can decide to reject your complaint if:

• the deadline for filing the complaint has already passed,
• the CRD does not have jurisdiction over the claim,
• the complaint has already been filed before with the CRD or the EEOC, or
• your allegations, even if proven, cannot amount to a violation of the law.[4]

If the investigator decides that there might be a case, he or she will create a complaint form and send it to you. If the complaint form accurately describes your case, you can sign it and return it to the CRD.[5]

The signed complaint form will then be served on your employer. Your employer, now known as the “respondent,” has 30 days to respond to it.[6]

5. Negotiate with your employer or file a lawsuit

You can go through the CRD investigation process or demand an immediate right to sue letter and take your case right to court.

Most CRD/DFEH complaints are resolved through mediation or negotiation.

The CRD’s mediation process is voluntary and free of charge. While the mediation is ongoing, CRD’s investigation will stop. If mediation is rejected or does not get anywhere, the CRD investigation will resume. That investigation can:

• subpoena you, your employer, or other witnesses,
• make the involved parties answer questions presented in writing, also known as interrogatories,
• compel the production of physical evidence, and
• obtain a court order for noncompliance.[7]

As evidence is uncovered, negotiations will heat up to resolve the case.

At the conclusion of CRD/DFEH investigation, several things can happen. CRD can:

• decide that no legal violation occurred, in which case they will close the investigation and issue you a right to sue letter,
• state that the case has merit and that the CRD will represent you against your employer,
• state that the case has merit but decline to intervene, often issuing you a right to sue letter, or
• fail to act within the time limit of 150 days, in which case a right to sue letter will be issued.

If the CRD finishes its investigation, it will produce a report of its findings. You should closely review this report with your lawyer to decide whether to file a civil lawsuit.

What is the CRD complaint process?

When you file a pre-complaint inquiry with the DFEH or CRD, it will go through the following process:

• an investigator will review the intake form,
• if the investigator accepts it, he or she will schedule an intake interview with you,
• if there are indications that your case has merit, the investigator will send you a complaint form that outlines your allegations and the evidence that supports them,
• if you find the complaint form to be accurate, you sign and return it to the investigator,
• the complaint form is served on your employer,
• your employer has 30 days to respond to it,
• the CRD will conduct an investigation to determine if your employer violated the FEHA,
• if both you and your employer want to, mediation or conciliation sessions will take place to resolve the dispute, pausing the CRD investigation process while they continue,
• if mediation reaches a resolution, the case will end,
• if dispute resolution does not settle the case, the CRD investigation will continue, and
• once the investigation is complete, the CRD will make a ruling on the merits of your case and either intervene on your behalf against your employer or give you a right to sue notice.

What types of complaints does the DFEH or CRD handle?

The CRD/DFEH only handles complaints of violations of the California FEHA. These are generally discrimination or harassment complaints concerning unwelcome conduct that targets your:

• race,
• sex, including sexual harassment,
• marital status,
• gender,
• sexual orientation,
• national origin,
• medical condition, and
• other legally protected traits.

Other workplace complaints, such as violations of California’s wage and hour laws, have to go elsewhere, such as the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE) also known as the Labor Commissioner’s Office.

What other agencies handle discrimination complaints in California?

The CRD is not the only government agency that accepts complaints about workplace discrimination. You can also file a complaint with the federal EEOC.

What is the role of the EEOC?

The EEOC is the agency that accepts complaints of unlawful discrimination under the federal civil rights law, Title VII. This makes it very similar to the CRD or DFEH. However, the protections that Title VII affords workers in California are not as strong as those provided by California law, like the FEHA. For example, the FEHA allows for punitive damages and does not have a cap on other civil penalties, such as for your emotional distress.

If your case centers on conduct that would be a violation of both Title VII and the FEHA – as many do – pursuing it under the FEHA may be the better choice.

[1] California Government Code 12940 GOV.

[2] See California Government Code 12965(b) GOV.

[3] 2 Cal. Code Regs. (CCR) 10007(b).

[4] 2 CCR 10004 and 10007.

[5] 2 CCR 10009.

[6] 2 CCR 10023.

[7] 2 CCR 10026.