Court Opinion

ID: 9477248
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-05 06:18:20.250288+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:45:46.574710
License: Public Domain

MILBURN, Circuit Judge,
dissenting.
Because I believe section 706(f)(1) of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f)(l), and the policies it reflects preclude invocation of the equitable doctrine of laches where the charging party elects to await completion of the EEOC’s processing of the charge and issuance of a right-to-sue notice prior to filing suit, and because I believe *1158that a proper application of the doctrine of laches in the present case would not bar plaintiff’s claim, I must respectfully dissent.
I.
Where, as here, an action arises under a statute enacted by Congress, the doctrine of separation of powers requires that courts be “circumspect in adopting principles of equity,” including the doctrine of laches, in order not to “risk frustrating the will of the Legislature.” County of Oneida v. Oneida Indian Nation, 470 U.S. 226, 105 S.Ct. 1245, 1266 & n. 12, 84 L.Ed.2d 169 (1985) (Stevens, J., dissenting); see also id. 105 S.Ct. at 1257 (“as Justice STEVENS properly recognizes, ... application of the equitable defense of laches in an action at law would be novel indeed.”); Weinberger v. Romero-Barcelo, 456 U.S. 305, 311-20, 102 S.Ct. 1798, 1802-07, 72 L.Ed.2d 91 (1982); Tennessee Valley Authority v. Hill, 437 U.S. 153, 193-95, 98 S.Ct. 2279, 2301-02, 57 L.Ed.2d 117 (1978). “While ‘[i]t is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is,’ ... it is equally — and emphatically —the exclusive province of the Congress not only to formulate legislative policies and mandate programs and projects, but also to establish their relative priority for the Nation.” Hill, 437 U.S. at 194, 98 S.Ct. at 2301-02 (quoting Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137, 177, 2 L.Ed. 60 (1803)). Courts may not invoke the doctrine of lach-es where to do so would be inconsistent with national policies and priorities established by Congress. See County of Oneida, 105 S.Ct. at 1257 n. 16; cf. Occidental Life Insurance Co. v. EEOC, 432 U.S. 355, 367, 97 S.Ct. 2447, 2455, 53 L.Ed.2d 402 (1977) (“State [statute of] limitations periods will not be borrowed if their application would be inconsistent with the underlying policies of the federal statute.”). However, the majority’s invocation of the doctrine of laches violates both the literal language of section 706(f)(1) and the “ ‘federal policy requiring employment discrimination claims to be ..., whenever possible, administratively resolved before suit is brought in federal court.’ ” Kamberos v. GTE Automatic Electric, Inc., 454 U.S. 1060, 1063, 102 S.Ct. 612, 614, 70 L.Ed.2d 599 (1981) (White, J., dissenting from denial of certio-rari) (quoting Occidental Life Insurance, 432 U.S. at 368, 97 S.Ct. at 2455).
Section 706(f)(1) expresses “the decision of Congress to delay judicial action while the EEOC performs its administrative responsibilities.” 1 Occidental Life Insurance, 432 U.S. at 368, 97 S.Ct. at 2455. Section 706(f)(1) provides, in relevant part:
If a charge filed with the [EEOC] ... is dismissed ... or if within one hundred and eighty days from the filing of such charge ... the [EEOC] has not filed a civil action ..., or ... entered into a conciliation agreement ..., the [EEOC] shall so notify the person aggrieved and within ninety days ... a civil action may be brought ... by the person claiming to be aggrieved....
Regulations promulgated by the EEOC provide that the charging party may request a right-to-sue notice after 180 days from the filing of the charge, see 29 C.F.R. § 1601.28(a), but nothing in section 706(f)(1) or the regulations require that a request be made within a certain time or at all. Kamberos, 454 U.S. at 1061, 102 S.Ct. at 612 (White, J., dissenting). While Congress permitted the charging party to elect to circumvent lengthy EEOC proceedings, Congress expressly intended that recourse to a civil action would “be the exception and not the rule, and that the vast majority of complaints [would] be handled through the offices of the [EEOC].” 118 Cong.Rec. 7563, 7565 (1972) (Conference Report on H.R. 1746, the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972).
Section 706(f)(1) provides “only an alternative method for a plaintiff to obtain relief from discrimination” and the charging party “cannot be penalized for choosing to forego this alternative and electing instead *1159the legislatively and judicially favored method of relying on the administrative processes of the EEOC.” Bernard v. Gulf Oil Co., 596 F.2d 1249, 1257 (5th Cir.1979);2 see also Brown v. Continental Can Co., 765 F.2d 810, 815 (9th Cir.1985) (“EEOC delays are not to be charged against private plaintiffs and ... complainants are not required to terminate the administrative process by requesting a notice of right-to-sue.”); Howard v. Roadway Express, Inc., 726 F.2d 1529, 1532-33 (11th Cir.1984) (quoting Bernard, 596 F.2d at 1257) (footnote omitted) (“‘[T]he private remedy allowed by [section 706(f)(1)] is only an alternative method to obtain relief from discrimination. A plaintiff cannot be penalized for choosing to forego this alternative and electing instead the legislatively and judicially favored method of relying on the administrative processes of the EEOC.’ ”); cf. Holsey v. Armour & Co., 743 F.2d 199, 211 (4th Cir.1984) (charging party’s “decision to rely on the [EEOC’s] administrative process before initiating a private suit is not inexcusable delay.”), cert. denied, 470 U.S. 1028, 105 S.Ct. 1395, 84 L.Ed.2d 784 (1985); Rozen v. District of Columbia, 702 F.2d 1202, 1204 (D.C.Cir.1983) (per curiam) (charging party not penalized where EEOC delayed issuance of right-to-sue notice for twenty-one months after reasonable cause determination). See generally 4 A. Larson & K. Larson, Employment Discrimination § 48.32(c)(3), at 9A-153-54 (1985) (“As long as there remains enough evidence to proceed to trial, a potentially meritorious claim should not be barred because the EEOC delayed in concluding its proceedings.”). Plaintiff’s “failure to file [its] Title VII claim until completion of the EEOC process was not inexcusable delay and cannot support the application of laches.” Howard, 726 F.2d at 1533.
The literal language of section 706(f)(1) leads inexorably to the conclusion that after 180 days have elapsed “the [charging party] may either file a private action within 90 days after EEOC notification or continue to leave the ultimate resolution of his charge to the efforts of the EEOC.” Occidental Life Insurance, 432 U.S. at 361, 97 S.Ct. at 2452. Moreover, the legislative history of section 706(f)(1) evinces that Congress did not intend the charging party’s statutory right to await termination of EEOC proceedings to be emasculated by lengthy EEOC delays. Both the House and Senate Reports expressly state that the very purpose of section 706(f)(1) was to give the charging party an option to circumvent lengthy EEOC delays resulting from the EEOC’s burgeoning work load and insufficient resources. H.R.Rep. No. 238, 92nd Cong., 2d Sess., reprinted in 1972 U.S. Code Cong. & Admin.News 2137, 2147-48; Occidental Life Insurance, 432 U.S. at 364, 97 S.Ct. at 2453 (quoting S.Rep. No. 92-415, p. 23 (1971)).
The EEOC interprets section 706(f)(1) as authorizing the charging party to await the outcome of the EEOC’s efforts to resolve the charge, prior to filing suit unless the charging party intentionally delays the proceedings. Brief of EEOC as amicus curiae at 10. It is well-settled that courts must show “ ‘great deference to the interpretation given the statute by the officers or agency charged with its administration.’” Environmental Protection Agency v. National Crushed Stone Association, 449 U.S. 64, 83, 101 S.Ct. 295, 307, 66 L.Ed.2d 268 (1980) (quoting Udall v. Tallman, 380 U.S. 1, 16, 85 S.Ct. 792, 801, 13 L.Ed.2d 616 (1965)). Congress charged the EEOC “with interpreting, administering, and enforcing Title VII,” and its “interpretation of Title VII is to be accorded ‘great deference.’ ” Parr v. Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Co., 791 F.2d 888, 892 (11th Cir.1986) (quoting Griggs v. Duke Power Co., 401 U.S. 424, 434, 91 S.Ct. 849, 855, 28 L.Ed.2d 158 (1971)); see also EEOC v. Shell Oil Co., 466 U.S. 54, 79 n. 36, 104 S.Ct. 1621, 1636 n. 36, 80 L.Ed.2d 41 (1984); Oscar Mayer & Co. v. Evans, 441 U.S. 750, 761, 99 S.Ct. 2066, 2074, 60 L.Ed.2d 609 *1160(1979); Hale v. Marsh, 808 F.2d 616, 620-21 (7th Cir.1986); EEOC v. Texas Industries, Inc., 782 F.2d 547, 551 (5th Cir.1986); Isaac v. Harvard University, 769 F.2d 817, 826-27 (1st Cir.1985). The EEOC’s interpretation of section 706(f)(1) is well-supported by the statute’s language and legislative history and should not be rejected by this court.
Section 706(f)(1) not only authorizes the charging party to await completion of the EEOC proceedings prior to filing suit, but also provides that a suit is timely if filed within ninety days after the charging party receives notice of the EEOC’s decision not to take action itself. See, e.g., Ringgold v. National Maintenance Corp., 796 F.2d 769, 770 (5th Cir.1986) (per curiam); Mosel v. Hills Department Store, Inc., 789 F.2d 251, 252 (3d Cir.1986) (per curiam); Soso Liang Lo v. Pan American World Airways, Inc., 787 F.2d 827, 828 (2d Cir.1986) (per curiam); Josiah-Faeduwor v. Communications Satellite Corp., 785 F.2d 344, 346 (D.C.Cir.1986) (per curiam); Norris v. Florida Department of Health & Rehabilitative Services, 730 F.2d 682 (11th Cir.1984) (per curiam). Where an action is based upon a statutory right for which Congress has provided a limitations period, laches is not a defense if the action is filed within the applicable limitations period. See United States v. RePass, 688 F.2d 154, 158 (2d Cir.1982). “If Congress explicitly puts a limit upon the time for enforcing a right which it created, there is an end of the matter. The Congressional statute of limitations is definitive.” Holmberg v. Armbrecht, 327 U.S. 392, 395, 66 S.Ct. 582, 584, 90 L.Ed. 743 (1946). Plaintiff’s action was filed within the applicable statute of limitations period, and, therefore, laches is not a defense.
II.
Assuming arguendo that section 706(f)(1) does not authorize the charging party to await termination of EEOC proceedings before filing suit, a proper application of the doctrine of laches would permit plaintiff to proceed with its claim. To establish the affirmative defense of laches, a defendant has the burden to show both an inexcusable delay by the plaintiff and prejudice to the defendant. Gardner v. Panama R.R., 342 U.S. 29, 31, 72 S.Ct. 12, 13, 96 L.Ed. 31 (1951) (per curiam). Courts that have invoked laches despite the language of and the policies reflected by section 706(f)(1) have found inexcusable delay only where the charging party failed to “monitor” or “show some interest” in the progress of the charge or where “it would [have] appealed] to a reasonable person that no administrative resolution [would] be forthcoming” because the EEOC was no longer actively engaged in the administrative process. Waddell v. Small Tube Products, Inc., 799 F.2d 69, 77 (3d Cir.1986); Jeffries v. Chicago Transit Authority, 770 F.2d 676, 682 (7th Cir.1985), cert. denied, 475 U.S. 1050, 106 S.Ct. 1273, 89 L.Ed.2d 581 (1986).3 Neither of these criteria is satisfied in the present case.
The court in Jeffries declined to decide whether the charging party must “necessarily demand” a right-to-sue notice, but instead held that the plaintiff’s failure to demonstrate “some interest” in prosecuting his claim supported a finding of inexcusable delay. The plaintiff in Jeffries filed his charge of discrimination in November 1974, but initiated no further contact with the EEOC until January 1984, when the EEOC issued the right-to-sue notice. The court concluded that the plaintiff “should at least have reached the agency” and that the plaintiff's failure to write or call the EEOC for at least nine years was inexcusable. 770 F.2d at 680.
The facts of Jeffries are in sharp contrast to those of the present case. Two years after filing the charge, plaintiff inquired about the status of the charge and requested that the EEOC proceed with its investigation as soon as possible. Further, plaintiff again contacted the EEOC in July *1161of 1979 concerning the status of the charge. Finally, plaintiff contacted the EEOC repeatedly in 1981 concerning the employees covered by the charge and defendant’s failure to cooperate with conciliation efforts. Plaintiff’s repeated efforts to monitor the progress of its charge clearly demonstrated plaintiff’s interest in prosecuting its claim. See Jeffries, 770 F.2d at 680; see also Rozen, 702 F.2d at 1204; Gifford v. Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Ry., 685 F.2d 1149, 1152 (9th Cir.1982).
On the other hand, the court in Waddell held that the charging party has an absolute right to await termination of EEOC proceedings unless it would appear to a reasonable person that no administrative resolution would be forthcoming. The court emphasized that “plaintiffs may reasonably delay while the EEOC is actively engaged in the administrative process” and that courts must not “undermine the EEOC’s capacity to investigate charges of discrimination ... nor undercut congressional policy of favoring reliance by plaintiffs ‘on the administrative process of the EEOC.’ ” 799 F.2d at 77 (citation omitted) (quoting Bernard, 596 F.2d at 1257). The court remanded to the district court rather than deciding whether the EEOC’s proceedings in the case before it were active.4
The court did, however, cite with approval the decision in Bernard where the court characterized EEOC proceedings of nine years as both “active” and “continuing.” 596 F.2d at 1256. In Bernard, the charge was filed in 1967 and a reasonable cause determination was made in 1968. The EEOC then pursued conciliation efforts for seven years until the EEOC informed the plaintiffs that the defendants did not wish to continue conciliation efforts. The plaintiff did not request a right-to-sue notice for more than a year following this notification.
Once the EEOC’s investigation began in the present case, it was both “active” and “continuing” until issuance of the right-to-sue notice. Between 1976 and 1980 the EEOC’s efforts were directed at securing evidence which defendant refused to provide even in the face of an EEOC subpoena. The EEOC made a reasonable cause determination in 1980 and commenced conciliation efforts which continued until 1982 when the right-to-sue notice was issued.5
The prejudice prong of the laches analysis requires a showing that the defendant’s chances of success have been diminished by loss of evidence or unavailability of witnesses. Gull Airborne Instruments, Inc. v. Weinberger, 694 F.2d 838, 844 (D.C.Cir.1982); Bernard, 596 F.2d at 1257. The fact that defendant destroyed documents and records after receiving notice of the charge will not suffice to establish prejudice since the records were destroyed “in violation of the EEOC regulation that requires an employer against whom a discrimination claim is filed to ‘preserve all personnel records relevant to the charge or action until final disposition of the charge or action.’ ” Rozen, 702 F.2d at 1204 (quoting 29 C.F.R. § 1602.14(a) (1977)). “A party cannot assert the defense of laches merely because it has failed to preserve evidence despite knowledge of a pending claim.” Bernard, 596 F.2d at 1257. See generally A. Larson & K. Larson, supra, § 48.32(c)(2), at 9A-152.
The fact that certain individuals who had been responsible for personnel matters are no longer employed by defendant is insufficient to establish prejudice because defendant made no showing that these witnesses were unavailable. “The fact that there have been personnel changes or that employees have retired is irrelevant unless those employees are unavailable.” Bernard, 596 F.2d at 1257; see also EEOC v. Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co., 735 F.2d *116269, 84 (3d Cir.), cert. dismissed, 469 U.S. 925, 105 S.Ct. 307, 83 L.Ed.2d 241 (1984). While defendant did establish that other individuals who had been responsible for personnel matters were deceased, defendant made no showing that these deaths would have prejudiced its case had the records not been destroyed in violation of the EEOC regulation. Any prejudice resulting from the death of these witnesses might have been cured by the records required to be preserved by the EEOC regulation. See Gull Airborne Instruments, 694 F.2d at 845; Bernard, 596 F.2d at 1257.
Defendant’s assertion of laches is precluded not only by its failure to establish prejudice and inexcusable delay, but also because the delay in the present case was caused in substantial part by defendant’s refusal to cooperate with the EEOC. “If the party which advances the defense of laches is responsible for the delay or contributes substantially to it he cannot take advantage of it.” Potash Co. v. International Minerals & Chemical Corp., 213 F.2d 153, 155 (10th Cir.1954); see also Covelo Indian Community v. Watt, 551 F.Supp. 366, 381 n. 12 (D.D.C.1982). “A court of equity should not ... permit a defendant to assert a laches defense ... where that same defendant was in some degree responsible for the lapse of time at issue.” Gruca v. United States Steel Corp., 360 F.Supp. 38, 47 (E.D.Pa.1973), rev’d on other grounds, 495 F.2d 1252 (3d Cir.1974).
More than three years of the delay in the present case was caused by defendant’s refusal to produce records voluntarily and to comply with an EEOC subpoena. Defendant urges that we ignore this fact because it had a legal right to refuse to comply with the EEOC subpoena. However, the right to challenge an EEOC subpoena is limited to the assertion that the evidence subpoenaed is not relevant to any matter under investigation or that the subpoena does not describe with sufficient particularity the evidence to be produced. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-9; 29 U.S.C. § 161(1). Defendant’s challenge to the subpoena was based on its belief that the EEOC had waited too long in commencing its investigation. This is not a sufficient basis to refuse compliance with an EEOC subpoena.
III.
Accordingly, I would REVERSE the district court’s entry of summary judgment and REMAND for further proceedings.

. The district court's opinion does not contain any discussion of section 706(f)(1) and the policies it reflects.

. The Fifth Circuit granted a petition for rehearing en banc on September 27, 1979. See 604 F.2d 449 (5th Cir.1979) (en banc per curiam). However, in its subsequent opinion, the court adopted that part of the panel’s opinion relied on in this opinion. See 619 F.2d 459, 463 (5th Cir.1980) (en banc), aff'd, 452 U.S. 89, 101 S.Ct. 2193, 68 L.Ed.2d 693 (1981).

. The Ninth Circuit held in Boone v. Mechanical Specialties Co., 609 F.2d 956, 959 (9th Cir.1979), that the plaintiffs failure to avail himself of his option to request a right-to-sue letter supported a finding of inexcusable delay, but the Ninth Circuit has subsequently refused to follow the reasoning in Boone. Brown v. Continental Can Co., 765 F.2d 810, 815 (9th Cir.1985).

. In the present case, the district court made no inquiry or findings in regard to whether the EEOC’s investigation was active.

. The district court made no inquiry about whether a reasonable person in plaintiffs position would have realized that an administrative resolution would not be forthcoming. The district court inexplicably focused its analysis on whether there was any excuse for the EEOC’s delay. Whether the EEOC’s delay was justified is wholly irrelevant in determining whether plaintiffs delay was inexcusable.