District of Columbia — Workplace Discrimination

The District of Columbia Human Rights Act (DCHRA) makes it unlawful for an employer to discriminate in hiring, discharge, compensation, terms and conditions of employment, or promotion based on actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibilities, genetic information, disability, matriculation, political affiliation, status as a victim or family member of a victim of domestic violence (a sexual offense or stalking), credit information, or homeless status. The DCHRA covers all employers operating in the District, regardless of size.

Source: D.C. Code § 2-1402.11

A complainant must file an administrative complaint with the D.C. Office of Human Rights within one year of the occurrence of the unlawful discriminatory practice, or the discovery thereof. A complainant may alternatively file a private cause of action directly in D.C. Superior Court within two years of the unlawful discriminatory act or its discovery — extended from one year by D.C. Law 25-300, effective January 21, 2025. Filing an administrative complaint with OHR tolls the statute of limitations for a subsequent court action while the complaint is pending. Private-sector employees may file directly in court without first exhausting administrative remedies.

Source: D.C. Code § 2-1403.04(a) | D.C. Code § 2-1403.16(b)

The District of Columbia Human Rights Act provides two distinct enforcement pathways: administrative proceedings through the Commission on Human Rights and private civil actions in D.C. Superior Court. A key practical advantage in both forums is the absence of any statutory cap on compensatory damages—unlike Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which caps combined compensatory and punitive damages at $50,000 to $300,000 depending on employer size.

Administrative remedies: what the Commission can order

When the Commission on Human Rights determines after a hearing that a respondent has engaged in an unlawful discriminatory practice, it issues a decision and order requiring the respondent to cease and desist and to take affirmative action. D.C. Code § 2-1403.13(a)(1) enumerates the available remedies: (A) hiring, reinstatement, or upgrading of employees, with or without back pay; (B) restoration to membership in a respondent labor organization or admission to a training program; (C) extension of full, equal, and unsegregated accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges; (D) payment of compensatory damages to the person aggrieved; (E) payment of reasonable attorneys' fees and costs; and (F) any other affirmative action that in the judgment of the Commission will effectuate the purposes of the DCHRA.

Compensatory damages under subsection (D) and attorneys' fees under subsection (E) are paid to the complainant or the complainant's counsel. The Commission develops and applies guidelines (approved by the D.C. Council in 1998) that govern the substantive and procedural standards for awards of compensatory damages, civil penalties, and attorneys' fees, but these guidelines do not impose a dollar ceiling on compensatory damages.

Separately, the statute authorizes the Commission to impose civil penalties for violations—these are paid to the District of Columbia General Fund, not to the individual complainant. For violations based specifically on credit-information discrimination under D.C. Code § 2-1402.11(a) or (b), the Commission must order payment to the complainant of a fine of $1,000 for the first violation, $2,500 for the second, and $5,000 for each subsequent violation (these fines are a remedial payment to the complainant, distinct from civil penalties deposited in the General Fund).

When a complaint is filed against the District government itself, the Office of Human Rights—upon a final administrative determination of a violation—has authority to issue a cease and desist order or impose the remedies set forth in § 2-1403.13(a)(1)(A)-(E) and (F). D.C. Law 25-300, effective January 21, 2025, clarified that persons who bring administrative complaints of unlawful discrimination against District government respondents may be entitled to compensatory damages and reasonable attorneys' fees under this framework.

Private civil action remedies: what courts may award

Any person claiming to be aggrieved by an unlawful discriminatory practice may file a private cause of action in a court of competent jurisdiction "for damages and such other remedies as may be appropriate." D.C. Code § 2-1403.16(a). The statute directs that "[t]he court may grant any relief it deems appropriate, including, the relief provided in §§ 2-1403.07 and 2-1403.13(a)," which cross-references the administrative remedies listed above. § 2-1403.16(f). Courts therefore may award hiring, reinstatement, back pay, compensatory damages for emotional distress and other non-economic harm, front pay, injunctive relief, reasonable attorneys' fees and costs, and any other equitable relief necessary to make the complainant whole.

The phrase "any relief it deems appropriate" is the operative grant of remedial discretion; there is no statutory cap on compensatory damages in court actions under the DCHRA. This is the statute's principal tactical advantage over Title VII, which limits the sum of compensatory and punitive damages to between $50,000 and $300,000 depending on the size of the employer. Courts determine the amount of compensatory damages based on the evidence presented regarding injury, harm, and loss.

The statute does not expressly provide for or bar punitive damages. The cross-reference in § 2-1403.16(f) to "the relief provided in … § 2-1403.13(a)" (the administrative remedies section) does not list punitive damages among the enumerated remedies. Unable to confirm as of 2026-05-29 whether D.C. courts have interpreted the catch-all phrase "any relief it deems appropriate" to permit or exclude punitive damages; no primary authority was located resolving this question.

D.C. Law 25-300 clarified in 2025 that the court's power under § 2-1403.16(f) extends to actions "against the District of Columbia," removing any ambiguity as to whether the full range of remedies is available when the District itself is the respondent. Previously, some uncertainty existed as to whether sovereign-immunity principles or procedural rules limited relief against the District; the 2025 amendment resolved this by expressly authorizing courts to grant any appropriate relief, including compensatory damages and attorneys' fees, in actions against the District.

Source: D.C. Code § 2-1403.13 | D.C. Code § 2-1403.16 | D.C. Code § 2-1403.03 | D.C. Law 25-300