A discrimination complaint filed with the Florida Commission on Human Relations can end in a lawsuit, an administrative hearing, or a dismissal. Florida Statute 760.11 sets out which path opens after the Commission acts and what each path can produce.
The Commission Decides Cause First
The Commission investigates a filed complaint and decides whether reasonable cause exists to believe that a discriminatory practice occurred. Both the aggrieved person and the respondent receive notice of the decision, the date it was made, and the options the statute provides next.
Those steps appear in Florida Statute 760.11, which also addresses a finding of no cause. A person who receives that outcome must request an administrative hearing within 35 days of the determination, or the claim is barred.
A Cause Finding Opens Two Paths
The aggrieved person may bring a civil action in court or request an administrative hearing once the Commission finds reasonable cause. The election is exclusive. The statute treats it as the only procedure available under the Florida Civil Rights Act, so the person pursues one route and not both.
Anyone holding a cause determination can take it to a Miami employment litigation lawyer to compare the court route with the hearing route before choosing. The determination and the original complaint show which facts the Commission accepted.
What a Court May Order
A court’s powers in a civil action under the statute reach beyond lost wages. The statute describes the relief a court may order as follows:
- The court may prohibit the discriminatory practice.
- The court may provide affirmative relief from the effects of the practice, including back pay.
- The court may award compensatory damages covering mental anguish and loss of dignity.
- The court may award punitive damages, limited to a total of $100,000 for the aggrieved person.
The state and its agencies and subdivisions may not be liable for punitive damages, which matters to anyone employed by a public body. A worker facing sexual harassment at a Miami employer can ask which of these remedies fit that conduct.
The Hearing Route Works Differently
An administrative law judge hears a case brought through the hearing route and issues a recommended order. The Commission then issues a final order that adopts, rejects, or modifies it.
A final order that finds a violation lets the person either sue as if cause had been found or accept the Commission’s relief, and the person cannot do both. A worker alleging workplace discrimination and choosing the hearing route should gather the documents that the administrative law judge will review.
Deadlines and Agency Choice Sit Elsewhere
Remedies matter only when a case is filed on time, and the state and federal deadlines differ. Employees sorting out which agency should receive a complaint can read how Florida’s longer filing window compares with the federal period before filing.
A worker who has already filed with one agency should confirm what that filing preserved before starting a second one with the other. The Commission’s notice lists the options and the decision date.
One Process Covers Many Kinds of Claims
The complaint process applies to violations of sections 760.01 through 760.10, which cover discrimination based on characteristics such as sex, race, and religion. Each kind of claim follows the same steps.
A worker who experienced job discrimination in hiring, pay, or discipline starts with the same complaint as a worker who reports harassment. The facts differ, but the path through the Commission is the same.
Employers Face the Same Remedies
An employer that receives a cause finding should read it for the facts the Commission accepted and for the date of the determination. Employers served with a charge learn its factual details, and a post on EEOC confidentiality limits explains that disclosure from the employee’s side.
Personnel files and emails that mention the complaint bear on how the claim is read. Policies in force on the date of the alleged practice matter as well.
Bar Memberships and Awards
Giselle Gutierrez leads our firm in Miami and belongs to the Florida Bar, the Cuban American Bar Association, and the Miami Dade Bar Association. The Miami Dade Bar Association awarded her its Circle of Excellence for Labor and Employment Law in 2024.
Gutierrez’s experience at Exhibit G Law Firm includes representing both employees and businesses. A cause finding therefore concerns workers deciding where to proceed and employers assessing exposure.
Details to Record Before Choosing a Path
A worker or employer holding a determination should note its date, the facts it accepted, and the options it lists. Those details decide which deadlines and remedies apply.
With those details in hand, either side can reach out to a Miami employment litigation lawyer to review the determination. A review before the election shows what each path could produce.