How to Sue for Age Discrimination: EEOC Charge to Lawsuit

To sue for age discrimination under federal law, you first file a Charge of Discrimination with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, wait out the required administrative period, and then file a civil complaint in court. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) protects workers 40 and older at companies with at least 20 employees, and it makes the EEOC step mandatory before any lawsuit.¹ Deadlines are strict, the proof standard is demanding, and the money you can recover is narrower than in other discrimination cases. Knowing all of that before you file changes how you build your case.

What You Have to Prove

The Supreme Court held in 2009 that an age discrimination plaintiff must prove age was the “but-for” cause of the employer’s decision. That means showing the employer would not have made the same decision if you were younger.² It is a tougher standard than the “motivating factor” test used in other employment discrimination claims, and it is why documentation carries so much weight.

Evidence comes in two forms. Direct evidence is a statement that reveals age-based motivation on its face, like a supervisor saying “we need younger blood in this department.” Statements that explicit are rare. Most cases rely on circumstantial evidence: patterns that support an inference of age-based decision-making. A company laying off its highest-performing employees over 50 and backfilling those roles with younger, less-experienced workers is that kind of pattern. Being passed over for a promotion in favor of a significantly younger colleague with weaker qualifications is another.

Start a written record the moment something feels wrong. For every incident, note the date, time, location, who was present, and what was said, capturing exact quotes when you can. Save emails, performance reviews, and any written communications that contradict the employer’s stated reasons. A detailed log written in real time is far more persuasive than a summary reconstructed months later.

Filing a Charge With the EEOC

You cannot go straight to court. You have to file a formal Charge of Discrimination with the EEOC first, and if you skip this step the court will dismiss your case.

The Deadline

You have 180 calendar days from the discriminatory act to file. That window extends to 300 days if your state has its own age discrimination law enforced by a state agency.³ A specific wrinkle for age cases: the 300-day extension only applies when a state law and state agency exist. A local ordinance banning age discrimination, without a state-level law, does not trigger the longer deadline.⁴ Missing the deadline by even one day can permanently bar your claim.

What Goes in the Charge

Your charge needs your contact information, the employer’s legal name and address, an estimate of how many people the employer has on staff, and a concise description of what happened. Describe the discriminatory acts, when they occurred, who was involved, and why you believe age was the reason. The EEOC provides the Charge of Discrimination form (Form 5) on its website.⁵

How You Submit It

Most charges start through the EEOC’s Public Portal, but an online inquiry is not the same thing as a filed charge. When you begin an inquiry, the system asks screening questions about your employer, the timing of the discrimination, and the basis for your complaint. If the EEOC determines it can help, you create a secure account, answer more questions, and schedule an intake interview by phone or in person. After that interview, the EEOC prepares your formal charge for you to review and sign.⁶ You don’t need a lawyer to file, though you’re welcome to bring one. You can also mail a signed charge to the nearest EEOC field office or walk in during business hours.⁷

What Happens After You File

Within 10 days of your filing, the EEOC sends a copy of the charge to your employer.⁸ From there, the case can take several paths.

Mediation

Shortly after the charge is filed, the EEOC may ask both sides whether they want to try mediation. It is entirely voluntary. If either party declines, the charge goes to investigation. A typical mediation session runs three to four hours, costs nothing, and is confidential. The mediator doesn’t decide who’s right; they help both sides work toward a resolution. On average, mediated charges resolve in under three months, compared to ten months or more for a full investigation. A written, signed mediation agreement is enforceable in court like any other contract. If mediation fails, your charge moves to investigation as if it never happened.⁹

Investigation and Right to Sue

If mediation is declined or unsuccessful, the EEOC asks the employer for a written position statement, then investigates. If the agency cannot determine that the law was violated, it issues a Dismissal and Notice of Rights, which gives you 90 days to file suit. If the EEOC finds reasonable cause but decides not to litigate on your behalf, it issues a Notice of Right to Sue with the same 90-day clock.¹⁰

The 60-Day ADEA Shortcut

Age discrimination cases have a feature other discrimination cases don’t. You can file a lawsuit any time after 60 days have passed since filing your charge, without waiting for a notice from the EEOC at all.¹¹ Title VII plaintiffs have to wait for the EEOC to act; ADEA plaintiffs don’t. Many people use this option when they want to move faster than the agency’s investigation timeline allows.

Filing the Lawsuit

Once the administrative requirements are satisfied, you file a civil complaint in federal or state court. If you received a Notice of Right to Sue, the 90-day filing clock runs from the day you receive it, not the day it was mailed.¹¹ Miss that window and your case almost certainly gets dismissed. The federal court filing fee is $405 as of late 2025, covering a $350 statutory fee plus a $55 administrative fee. State court fees vary.

This is the point where an attorney becomes close to essential. The complaint has to lay out the factual and legal basis for your claim in a format the court requires. Many employment discrimination attorneys work on contingency, taking a percentage of any recovery rather than charging by the hour. Under the ADEA, courts can order the employer to pay a winning plaintiff’s reasonable attorney fees, which makes strong cases attractive to lawyers working on contingency.¹²

If You Signed an Arbitration Agreement

If you signed a mandatory arbitration agreement when you were hired, that agreement is likely enforceable for age discrimination claims. The Supreme Court has held ADEA claims can be subject to compulsory arbitration. The agreement does not block you from filing an EEOC charge, but it can force your case out of court and into arbitration. Congress carved out an exception for sexual assault and sexual harassment claims in 2022, but no equivalent exception exists for age discrimination.¹³ Check your employment agreement early so you know which forum your case will land in.

What You Can Recover

ADEA remedies are more limited than many people expect. You cannot recover compensatory damages for emotional distress, and you cannot recover punitive damages. Those categories are available in Title VII race and sex discrimination cases; Congress excluded them from the ADEA.¹⁴ What is available:

Back pay: lost wages and benefits from the date of the discriminatory act through the resolution of your case.
Front pay: future lost earnings when reinstatement isn’t practical, such as when no position is available or the working relationship has become too hostile.¹⁵
Liquidated damages: if the employer’s violation was willful, meaning it knew or showed reckless disregard for whether its conduct was illegal, the court doubles your back pay award. You carry the burden of proving willfulness.¹⁶
Reinstatement or promotion: courts can order the employer to return you to your job or award the promotion you were denied.
Attorney fees and costs: a prevailing plaintiff is entitled to reasonable attorney fees paid by the employer.¹²

One advantage the statute does provide: you have the right to a jury trial on any factual issue related to damages, even if you are also seeking equitable relief like reinstatement.¹² Juries in employment cases tend to be sympathetic to older workers, and that is one reason many employers prefer to settle before trial.

If You’ve Been Offered a Severance Package

If your employer offers severance in exchange for waiving your right to sue for age discrimination, federal law imposes specific requirements on that waiver. Under the Older Workers Benefit Protection Act, the waiver is only valid if all of the following are true:¹⁷

It is written in plain language the average person being asked to sign can understand.
It specifically references the Age Discrimination in Employment Act by name. A generic release of “all claims” is not enough.
It provides new consideration, meaning something of value beyond what you’re already owed.
It advises you in writing to consult an attorney before signing.
It gives you at least 21 days to decide, or 45 days if the waiver is part of a group layoff or exit incentive program.
It includes a 7-day revocation period after you sign, during which you can change your mind. The employer cannot shorten it.
It does not attempt to waive future claims for events that haven’t happened yet.

If the agreement fails any of these requirements, the waiver is invalid and you keep your right to sue. Employers get this wrong regularly, particularly the ADEA-by-name requirement and the consideration period. Have an attorney review the agreement before your decision window closes.

Retaliation While Your Case Is Pending

Filing a charge feels risky when you still work for the employer. The ADEA addresses this directly: it is illegal for an employer to retaliate against you for opposing age discrimination, filing a charge, testifying in an investigation, or participating in any ADEA proceeding.¹⁸ Retaliation covers obvious moves like firing or demoting you, and also subtler ones: reassignment to undesirable shifts, exclusion from meetings, sudden documentation of performance issues that were never raised before.¹⁹

If your employer retaliates, that becomes a separate claim you can add to your case. Retaliation claims are often easier to prove than the underlying discrimination, because the timing between your protected activity and the adverse action creates a strong inference on its own. Document any changes in your treatment that begin after you file.

1
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Age Discrimination
2
Justia Law. Gross v. FBL Financial Services, Inc.
3
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Time Limits For Filing A Charge
4
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. How to File a Charge of Employment Discrimination – Section: Time Limits for Filing a Charge
5
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Selected EEOC Forms
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U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. EEOC Public Portal
7
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. How to File a Charge of Employment Discrimination
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U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. What You Can Expect After You File a Charge
9
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Mediation
10
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. What You Can Expect After a Charge is Filed
11
eCFR. 29 CFR 1626.18 – Filing of Private Lawsuit
12
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 626 – Recordkeeping, Investigation, and Enforcement
13
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Recission of Mandatory Binding Arbitration of Employment Discrimination Disputes as a Condition of Employment
14
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Remedies For Employment Discrimination
15
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Front Pay
16
Ninth Circuit District and Bankruptcy Courts. Age Discrimination – Damages – Willful Discrimination – Liquidated Damages
17
eCFR. 29 CFR 1625.22 – Waivers of Rights and Claims Under the ADEA
18
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 623 – Prohibition of Age Discrimination
19
U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Enforcement Guidance on Retaliation and Related Issues