Section 4-717. CONCILIATION

 

717.1After the Director has issued the probable cause LOD, the parties shall be given notice of an opportunity to settle the complaint through conciliation.

 

717.2If a conciliation conference is scheduled, it shall be for the purpose of discussing all relief appropriate under the Act.  The relief shall be in the form of compensatory relief and/or other remedies deemed appropriate, but shall not include punitive damages.

 

717.3At the conciliation conference and during the entire period of conciliation, discussions on the merits of the complaint shall not be entertained.

 

717.4If the endeavors to conciliate succeed, a written conciliation agreement shall be prepared by and executed between the parties, subject to the approval of the Director.

 

717.5The conciliation agreement shall not constitute an admission by the respondent of any violation of the law, federal or local.

 

717.6The terms of a conciliation agreement may require a respondent to refrain from committing specified discriminatory practices in the future, and, within the judgment of the Office, to take such affirmative action as will effectuate the purpose of the Act.

 

717.7The terms of a conciliation agreement may also include consent by the respondent to the entry of a consent decree in a court of competent jurisdiction, embodying the terms of the conciliation agreement.

 

717.8When a conciliation agreement has been fully executed, it shall be binding on all parties.  The parties shall waive all rights to file a subsequent complaint based on issues which could have been included in the conciliation charge or based on issues arising out of the same facts addressed in the complaint.

 

717.9If during conciliation efforts, the respondent offers a remedy that would place the complainant in the same position that the complainant would have been in had the alleged discriminatory practice not occurred, and the complainant refuses to accept the offer, and if the Director determines that the offered remedy would make the complainant whole, the Director may order the complaint dismissed.

 

717.10The period for conciliation shall extend for thirty (30) days from receipt of the notice inviting the parties to conciliate the complaint.

 

717.11Conciliation shall be considered to have failed if, during the thirty (30) day conciliation period, the respondent refuses to participate in conciliation, or if the respondent’s offer of a remedy is such that it will not make the complainant whole and the complainant refuses to accept the offer.

 

717.12A complaint by either party alleging that the terms of a conciliation agreement are not being complied with shall be submitted to the Director for review.

 

717.13Upon receipt of a charge of noncompliance with a conciliation agreement, the Director shall notify the party being charged with the noncompliance, and permit the party an opportunity to respond to the charge.

 

717.14The Director shall review the charge of noncompliance, the conciliation agreement, and the response to determine whether the terms are being complied with.

 

717.15If it is determined that the terms of a conciliation agreement are being complied with, the parties shall be notified and the complaint of noncompliance shall be dismissed.

 

717.16If it is determined that the terms of a conciliation agreement are not being complied with, the party guilty of noncompliance shall be notified and given five (5) calendar days, after receipt of the notice, to comply.  If the party fails to comply within the given time, the agreement shall be referred to the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) for enforcement.

 

717.7Pursuant to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, approved December 15, 1967 (81 Stat. 602; 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq.), the complainant may withdraw his or her agreement to settle within seven (7) calendar days of signing the agreement.

 

source

Final Rulemaking published at 56 DCR 007324 (September 4, 2009).