PosiTiVeChangesComingToFloRida’ sCiVilRighTsaCT
Labor & Employment Law Section Co-Chairs: RaquelJefferson – PhelpsDunbar & YvetteEverhart – Sass, Everhart & Silva, P. A.
anewamendmenttothe FCRawhichwillclarify statuteoflimitationsfor claimsissettotake effectonJuly1, 2026.
In what is sure to be a relief to Florida employers, and to follow up on the Labor and Employment Law Section’ s article in the January / February 2026 issue of The Lawyer, changes coming to Florida’ s Civil Rights Act( FCRA) will soon provide much needed certainty on deadlines for pursuing litigation. A new Amendment to the FCRA, which will clarify the statute of limitations for claims, is set to take effect on July 1, 2026.
The FCRA prohibits discrimination in employment based on an individual’ s race, color, religion, gender, pregnancy, national origin, age, handicap, or marital status. It applies to employers with at least fifteen( 15) employees and provides the right to bring a civil claim, but only after certain administrative remedies have been exhausted. Employees interested in filing a lawsuit must first file a Charge of Discrimination with the Florida Commission on Human Relations( FCHR) or the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission( EEOC), which then investigates whether there is reasonable cause to believe a discriminatory or retaliatory action has taken place.
If the FCHR finds no reasonable cause, the employee is barred from
filing suit and must instead pursue remedies through an administrative review, typically a hearing before the Department of Administrative Hearings( DOAH), requested within 35 days of the No Reasonable Cause determination. If reasonable cause is found, or if no determination is made within 180 days( not unusual when the Charge is being primarily investigated by the EEOC), the employee may proceed to private litigation within one year of the FCHR’ s failure to make a timely decision. Further adding to the confusion, some case law suggested that, in the absence of any determination at all from the FCHR after 180 days, a plaintiff could pursue state law FCRA claims within four years of the discriminatory act.
Due to uncertainty about which entity is investigating, employees and employers have historically been unsure as to when the statute of limitations begins to run. Florida’ s First and Fourth District Courts of Appeal have compounded the problem by issuing conflicting opinions on whether an EEOC dismissal was sufficient to trigger the countdown for FCRA litigation. The First DCA held that unless and until the FCHR issued a reasonable cause determination, the statute of limitations does not begin to run, even years after a charge is filed and the EEOC has issued a determination. The Fourth DCA, conversely, found that an EEOC determination did start the clock on an FCRA claim, which could result in some lawsuits being barred.
In response to this confusion and uncertainty, the Florida Legislature unanimously approved House Bill 1407 to clarify the timeframe. Under the new Amendment, employees will have one year after the date of either the FCHR’ s or the EEOC’ s notice of right to sue to bring an FCRA lawsuit. Further, if no notice is issued within 180 days after the Charge is filed, the employee has 18 months from the date of the Charge to bring a lawsuit.
The new changes should bring much needed clarity and certainty to an issue that has long troubled Florida employers. n
Authors: Andrew Froman & Lisa McGlynn – Fisher Phillips
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