1. (a) “Civil Action” means the type of proceeding brought by the department pursuant to sections 12965 and 12981 of the Government Code.
2. (b) “Complainant” means a “person,” as that term is defined by Government Code section 12925(d) or 12927(g), who files a complaint with the department alleging that the person has been aggrieved by a practice made unlawful by any law the department enforces.
3. (c) “Complaint” means a complaint filed with the department alleging that a “person,” as that term is defined by Government Code section 12925(d), or class or group of persons, has been aggrieved by a practice made unlawful by any law the department enforces. “Complaint” also means the charging document filed by the department pursuant to sections 12965 and 12981 of the Government Code.
4. (d) “Conciliation,” “conciliate,” and “conciliating” refer generally to the department's efforts to resolve disputes by agreement, including efforts to resolve complaints through settlement.
5. (e) “Department” means the Civil Rights Department (CRD) and includes any officer, employee, or other individual delegated any function, power, or duty of the department.
6. (f) “Departmental appeal” means a verbal or written appeal or request made to the department by a complainant or respondent seeking reconsideration of the department's determination regarding a complaint filed with the department.
7. (g) “Director” means the Director of the Civil Rights Department and includes any officer, employee, or other individual delegated any function, power, or duty of the director.
8. (h) “Dispute Resolution Division” means the division of the department that employs trained neutrals to mediate complaints filed with the department. The dispute resolution division is separate from the department's enforcement and legal divisions. It may utilize volunteers as well as dispute resolution division staff to facilitate communication between parties to assist them in attempting to reach a mutually acceptable settlement agreement.
9. (i) “District Administrator” means any employee, officer, or other individual delegated the authority to supervise the staff and day-to-day operations of a department district, satellite, or regional office.
10. (j) “EEOC” means the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
11. (k) “Enforcement Division” means the division of the department responsible for filing, investigating, and conciliating complaints alleging a practice made unlawful by any law the department enforces.
12. (l) “HUD” means the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.
13. (m) “Legal Division” means the division of the department responsible for, among other responsibilities, providing legal advice to all divisions of the department, including conducting and supporting investigations, issuing and prosecuting civil complaints alleging a practice made unlawful by any law the department enforces, and providing legal representation to the department.
14. (n) “Mediation,” “mediate,” and “mediating” refer to the department's efforts to resolve disputes through a confidential process facilitated by neutrals in the dispute resolution division. Mediation includes “mandatory post-determination mediation” and “voluntary pre-determination mediation.” Mediation is one form of conciliation.
15. (o) “Mandatory post-determination mediation” means mediation conducted when the department requires parties to a complaint to mediate after the department has determined that there is reasonable cause to believe a law it enforces has been violated.
16. (p) “Pre-complaint inquiry” means the initial request to have the department investigate allegations that a “person,” as that term is defined by Government Code section 12925(d) of these regulations, or class or group of persons, may have been aggrieved by a practice made unlawful by any law the department enforces.
17. (q) “Protected basis” means any basis or characteristic upon which discrimination is prohibited by the FEHA (Gov. Code, § 12900 et seq.), Government Code section 11135 to 11139, the Unruh Civil Rights Act (Civ. Code, § 51), the Ralph Civil Rights Act (Civ. Code, § 51.7), the Disabled Persons Act (Civ. Code, §§ 54-55.32), the Equal Pay Act (Labor Code § 1197.5), or any other law the department enforces.
18. (r) “Regional Administrator” means any employee, officer, or other individual delegated the authority to supervise the staff and operations of a department regional office or multiple district or satellite offices.
19. (s) “Respondent” means an entity or person alleged to have committed a practice made unlawful by a law the department enforces and against whom a complaint has been filed with the department or civil action has been filed.
20. (t) “Verified complaint” means a complaint submitted to the department with the complainant's oath or affidavit stating that to the best of the complainant's knowledge, all information contained in the complaint is true and correct, except matters stated on information and belief, which the complainant believes to be true. A complaint must be verified prior to investigation by the department.
21. (u) “Voluntary pre-determination mediation” means mediation agreed to by the parties and conducted when the department determines that it is appropriate to mediate a complaint before the department has determined whether there is reasonable cause to believe that a law it enforces has been violated.

Note: Authority cited: Section 12930(e), Government Code. Reference: Section 446, Code of Civil Procedure; and Sections 12901-12903, 12925, 12927, 12930-12932, 12940, 12950, 12955-12956, 12960, 12961, 12963.1(a), 12963.7, 12964, 12965, 12971, 12980-12981, 12984-12989.3 and 12995, Government Code.

History

1. New section filed 9-7-2011; operative 10-7-2011 (Register 2011, No. 36).

2. Repealer of subsections (a) and (s), new subsections (b) and (p), subsection relettering, amendment of subsections (l), (n), (t) and (u) and amendment of Note filed 10-27-2014 as an emergency; operative 10-27-2014 (Register 2014, No. 44). A Certificate of Compliance must be transmitted to OAL by 4-27-2015 or emergency language will be repealed by operation of law on the following day.

3. Certificate of Compliance as to 10-27-2014 order, including amendment of subsections (b) and (d), transmitted to OAL 4-20-2015 and filed 6-2-2015; amendments effective 6-2-2015 pursuant to Government Code section 11343.4(b)(3) (Register 2015, No. 23).

4. Repealer of subsections (a), (l) and (o), new subsection (h), subsection relettering, amendment of newly designated subsections (b), (o) and (s) and amendment of Note filed 8-31-2017; operative 10-1-2017 (Register 2017, No. 35).

5. Amendment of subsections (d)-(e), (g)-(h) and (m), new subsections (n), (o) and (u), repealer of former subsection (o), subsection relettering and amendment of newly designated subsection (q) filed 2-17-2026; operative 4-1-2026 (Register 2026, No. 8).