MCAD regs designed to resolve pending cases face pandemic-related challenges

If you’ve had a case pending before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) for quite some time, you may be wondering what the next steps will be. Here is an update on what to expect at the commission for the rest of 2021.

How we got here

The MCAD’s processing time often has been longer than employers and employees would have liked. In fiscal year 2019, the commission received 3,664 cases, which was a 15% increase over the previous year, and almost 300 cases had been pending for 18 months or more. The sheer number of cases and the agency’s limited staffing presented a barrier to a rapid turnaround.

In 2020, to speed up case processing, the MCAD issued long-awaited, revised regulations. It was the first complete overhaul of the regs since their 1999 enactment. The commission noted its overarching goal was “to develop clearer procedural regulations that accurately reflect the agency’s practices and procedures and which are intended to be more easily comprehended by parties and practitioners appearing before the agency.” Simply stated, if the parties can more easily understand their roles and responsibilities, the agency should be able to process cases more quickly.