Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal Affirms Dismissal with Prejudice for Failure to Exhaust Administrative Remedies in Sexual Harassment Case.

The trial court dismissed an employee’s sexual harassment lawsuit against her employer for failure to exhaust her administrative remedies. Pacheco, the employee, filed an administrative discrimination complaint with the Miami-Dade Commission on Human Rights accusing her employer of sexually harassing her. After investigating, the Commission issued a no-probable-cause determination with a right to appeal within 15 days, warning that the decision would become final and enforceable in circuit court if not timely appealed. 

Pursuant to the unambiguous and plain language of section 11A-28(7)(c) of the Miami-Dade County Code, the trial court found that Pacheco was required to file an appeal or request a hearing before resorting to the court for relief. 

The Third District affirmed dismissal of the lawsuit with prejudice, finding there was no due process violation since the employee failed to complete the administrative process as required by the County Code prior to filing suit. 

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