California Race Discrimination Lawyer for California employees
As a California race discrimination lawyer, Milan Chatterjee represents employees in San Bernardino and Riverside Counties who were fired, passed over, paid less or harassed because of their race, color or ancestry. California law also protects hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locs and twists under the CROWN Act.
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2 States
Admitted to the State Bars of Nevada and California
Fortune 500
Former in-house counsel, Las Vegas Sands Corp.
UCLA Law
Law degree, UCLA School of Law; visiting student, NYU Law
As Seen In
Bloomberg Law and the Las Vegas Review-Journal
2 States
Admitted to the State Bars of Nevada and California
Fortune 500
Former in-house counsel, Las Vegas Sands Corp
UCLA Law
Law degree, UCLA School of Law; visiting student, NYU Law
As Seen In
Bloomberg Law and the Las Vegas Review-Journal
What You Can Recover in a Race Discrimination Claim
California and federal law both give employees strong remedies for race discrimination. Emotional distress damages are not capped under FEHA, and the court can order the employer to pay your attorney's fees. As your California race discrimination lawyer, our job is to document every loss.
- Back pay: lost wages and benefits from the date of the discriminatory act
- Front pay: future lost earnings when returning to the job is not realistic
- The pay difference when you were paid less than coworkers of another race
- Emotional distress damages
- Punitive damages when the employer acted with malice, oppression or fraud (Civ. Code 3294)
- Reasonable attorney's fees, costs and expert fees (Gov. Code 12965)
- Reinstatement, a promotion you were denied, or a corrected personnel record.
- Removal of unlawful grooming or appearance rules
- Court-ordered training and policy changes at the employer (Gov. Code 12965)
- Accountability that protects the coworkers who come after you.
Race Discrimination Under California Law
FEHA makes it illegal for employers with 5 or more employees to treat you differently because of race, color, ancestry or national origin (Gov. Code 12940(a)). These are the situations a California race discrimination lawyer sees most often.
Unequal Treatment in Hiring, Pay, Promotion and Firing
Being fired, demoted, denied a promotion, disciplined more harshly or paid less than coworkers of another race can all be race discrimination. Employers rarely say the reason out loud, so these cases are usually proven through comparisons, timing and shifting explanations.
How We Win: We compare how you were treated with coworkers of other races in similar roles, and test the employer's stated reason against its own records.
Hair Discrimination and the CROWN Act
Under California law, race includes traits associated with race, including hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locs and twists (Gov. Code 12926(w), (x)). An employer cannot refuse to hire you, discipline you or require you to change your natural hair to meet a grooming policy.
- Grooming policies: rules that ban locs, braids, twists or natural hair
- Hiring: being told to change your hair to get or keep the job
- Discipline: being written up or sent home over your hairstyle
Racial Harassment and Slurs
Racial slurs, jokes, symbols or repeated comments about your race can create a hostile work environment. FEHA's harassment protections apply to employers of any size, and an employer is responsible for harassment by a supervisor (Gov. Code 12940(j)). A single serious incident can be enough (Gov. Code 12923(b)).
Report It: Reporting harassment to HR in writing creates a record and triggers the employer's duty to investigate and stop it (Gov. Code 12940(k)).
Federal Protection Under Section 1981
Federal law also prohibits race discrimination in employment under Title VII and 42 U.S.C. 1981. Section 1981 claims generally have a longer filing period than agency complaints and apply to employers of any size, which can matter when FEHA deadlines have passed.
What We Look For: Every law that applies to your facts, so no deadline or remedy is missed.
Unsure Whether You Have a Case?
Tell us what happened and when. We will give you an honest assessment of your rights under California law.
Investigation, Aggressive Pursuit, Maximum Recovery
When you hire a California race discrimination lawyer at our firm, your case moves through three phases.
Investigation & Honest Case Assessment
We review your timeline, performance history, pay and the employer's stated reasons, and request your personnel file (Lab. Code 1198.5) and payroll records (Lab. Code 226). We identify comparators, witnesses and every deadline under state and federal law.
Aggressive Pursuit
We file your complaint with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), and with the EEOC when federal claims apply. Depending on your goals, we pursue an investigation and mediation, or request an immediate right-to-sue notice and file in court.
Maximum Recovery
We negotiate from a position of strength and prepare every case as if it will go to trial. As former in-house counsel, Milan knows how employers evaluate risk and what moves them to settle.
California Workers We Fight For
Our California race discrimination lawyer represents employees across the Inland Empire's largest industries.
Warehousing & Logistics
Unequal shift assignments, harsher discipline and promotions that skip workers of one race.
Health Care
Nurses and staff facing racial comments, unequal scheduling or stalled advancement.
Education & Public Sector
Teachers, school staff and public employees passed over or disciplined unequally.
Retail & Hospitality
Grooming and appearance rules that target natural hair and protective hairstyles.
Construction & Trades
Racial slurs on job sites, unequal assignments and crew layoffs.
Corporate & Professional
Pay gaps, stalled promotions and restructurings that fall hardest on employees of color.
What To Do in the First 7 Days
What you do early can shape your case. These steps protect your rights whether you still work there or have already been let go.
Write Down What Happened
Record dates, names, exact words, and who was present. Note how coworkers of other races were treated in the same situation.
Save Your Evidence
Keep performance reviews, emails, texts, photos of offensive messages, grooming policies and pay stubs you already have. Do not take confidential company files.
Report It in Writing
If you still work there, report the discrimination or harassment to HR in writing and keep a copy. Reporting is protected activity, and retaliation for it is illegal (Gov. Code 12940(h)).
Call an Employee Rights Lawyer
Before signing any severance agreement or release, call (888) 785-9923 for a free consultation.
Evidence That Can Strengthen a Race Discrimination Claim
Strong race discrimination cases are often built on comparisons: coworkers of another race who kept their jobs, got the promotion or were disciplined less harshly for the same conduct. Racial comments, slurs or stereotypes from decision makers, grooming rules aimed at natural hair, and explanations that change over time all point to the real reason.
Performance reviews, emails, texts, schedules, pay records, the personnel file and witness accounts all help. A California race discrimination lawyer organizes this evidence into a clear story for the CRD, a mediator or a jury.
Race Discrimination Claims and California Employment Law
State and federal law both protect against race discrimination, with different coverage and deadlines. Talk to an attorney before relying on any deadline.
Race Discrimination Claim Deadlines
| Claim | Where to file | General deadline | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| FEHA race discrimination or harassment complaint | California Civil Rights Department | 3 years from the unlawful act | Gov. Code 12960 |
| FEHA lawsuit | Superior Court | 1 year from the right-to-sue notice | Gov. Code 12965 |
| Title VII charge | EEOC | 300 days | 42 U.S.C. 2000e-5(e) |
| Section 1981 lawsuit | Federal court | Generally 4 years for most employment claims | 42 U.S.C. 1981; 28 U.S.C. 1658 |
Frequently Asked Questions About Race Discrimination in California
Race discrimination is an adverse decision about your job, such as firing, demotion, denied promotion, lower pay or harsher discipline, where your race, color or ancestry was a substantial motivating reason. It also includes racial harassment that creates a hostile work environment (Gov. Code 12940(a), (j)).
Yes. Under the CROWN Act, race includes traits associated with race, including hair texture and protective hairstyles such as braids, locs and twists (Gov. Code 12926(w), (x)). An employer cannot refuse to hire, discipline or fire you because of your natural hair or protective hairstyle.
FEHA's discrimination rules apply to employers with 5 or more employees, and its harassment protections apply to employers of any size. Federal Section 1981 claims can also apply regardless of employer size.
Generally 3 years from the discriminatory act to file a complaint with the California Civil Rights Department (Gov. Code 12960), and 1 year after the right-to-sue notice to file a lawsuit (Gov. Code 12965). Federal EEOC charges are generally due within 300 days.
It can. California law recognizes that a single incident of harassing conduct can be enough to create a hostile work environment (Gov. Code 12923(b)). A slur from a supervisor is treated especially seriously. Whether your facts qualify depends on the details, so talk to a lawyer.
Remedies can include back pay, front pay, lost benefits, emotional distress damages and, when the employer acted with malice, oppression or fraud, punitive damages. A court can also order the employer to pay your reasonable attorney's fees and costs (Gov. Code 12965).
No. FEHA makes it illegal to retaliate against an employee for opposing discrimination, filing a complaint, or taking part in an investigation (Gov. Code 12940(h)). Retaliation is a separate claim, even if the underlying discrimination is hard to prove.
Yes. We represent employees throughout San Bernardino and Riverside Counties in California race discrimination claims, with free, confidential consultations in English or Spanish. Call (888) 785-9923.
Treated Differently Because of Your Race? Talk to a California Race Discrimination Lawyer.
Tell us what happened. The consultation is free and confidential.
Related Employees Services
Milan Chatterjee
UCLA Law Graduate. Former in-house counsel at Las Vegas Sands Corp. Nevada & California Bar. Founding President, South Asian Bar Assoc. of Las Vegas.