Fifth Circuit Determines Hurricanes' Effect on Right-to-Sue
Clark v. Paragon Systems, Inc., No. 06-30934 slip op. (5th Cir. Apr. 3, 2007), an unpublished opinion, considers the effect of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita on a litigant’s deadline to file a lawsuit within 90 days of receiving a right-to-sue notice from the EEOC. Construed most liberally in favor of the plaintiff, various orders entered after the hurricanes would have suspended operable deadlines until November 25, 2005. Ninety days from that date – the last day on which the plaintiff’s complaint was required to be filed – was February 23, 2006.
The plaintiff mailed his complaint on February 14, 2006, but it was not received by the clerk of the court until March 9, 2006. “Filing” occurs when the complaint is received by the clerk, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 5(e); the fact that it was mailed before the deadline is immaterial. Because the plaintiff “chose to risk the vagaries of the postal delivery system” despite the post-hurricane disruptions in postal service, and then also failed to check to see if the clerk had received his complaint timely, the complaint was not filed within the 90 days, and was properly dismissed.
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