I filed a complaint with an Ohio Administrative Board but they dismissed it without making any finding saying if I am unhappy file a mandamus. So i researched prior decisions of theirs and found that in the last three years with over 500 consumer complaint coming before it, no consumer ever won and each was treated the same way. The Fox is guarding the chicken coop. Do I have any claim for their violation of due process rights and refusal to make a real investigation?
You can file an administrative complaint with the OCRC or EEOC with little trouble. It doesn't really cost anything to fill out their forms. The only caveat is that if you frame the issue incorrectly, it could hurt your chances in a civil lawsuit in an actual court of law.
Many employment/civil rights claims have "exhaustion" requirements, meaning that unless you put the legal claim before an administrative agency, a court may throw out your complaint without considering the merits of it.
It may be of benefit to meet with with an employment law attorney to discuss ALL of your potential claims before you file an administrative complaint. The odds of the OCRC or EEOC actually helping you is less than 5% -- but many claims you have to file with them first, even though it is a waste of time.
This might sound confusing or contradictory, but that is only more reason to find an employment attorney for a consultation before filing an administrative complaint.
Mr. Gallick makes some important points:
1. Deadlines for filing a complaint are critical and missing one can mean you won't get anything done.
2. Correctly identifying and stating your claims risks losing on the claims or missing a claim that will be later barred because not raised.
3. Unfortunately some agencies rarely "vote" for the individual, but exhaustion of administrative remedies is almost always a requirement before going to court or the next level of "appeal."
Take his advice, you can likely find an employment attorney in town who will give an initial consultation.
This question doesn't seem like a discrimination issue to me. Your facts aren't complete enough to make a solid opinion, but sounds like you had a consumer complaint? Mandamus is a special remedy, has some challenging procedural hitches, and has time limitations for filing. But I am greatly impressed by your research. The findings suggest some additional claims that can be made. Such cases don't come without a cost, and so the question is how important to you is it. But the facts definitely warrant investing in a consultation to flesh out the facts. Feel free to call me in Columbus at 888-318-0075.
