In March 2006, the EEOC's San Francisco District Office filed suit in United States District Court, District of Hawaii, against Chaminade University, alleging that the university violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act when it refused to hire a female job applicant because she was pregnant.

The parties made cross-motions for summary judgment. The defendant alleged plaintiffs failed to mitigate damages and asserted five defenses; both motions were denied. The EEOC's motion for partial summary judgment was granted. In June 2007, the case was resolved by a consent decree.

Under the terms of the consent decree, the charging party was awarded $50,000, and the defendant was ordered to develop an anti-discrimination policy, to implement training for its employees, and to establish a procedure for investigating complaints of discrimination. The consent decree was set to last for four years from the date of entry on June 19, 2007. However, on March 12, 2010, the court removed the case from its docket and closed the action without prejudice, with terms and conditions of the decree remaining in effect. The court cited no material change in the status of the action or consent decree, and decided an administrative closing would be appropriate. The full length of the consent decree has now passed, and the case is presumed officially closed.

Shankar Viswanathan - 05/19/2008
Chelsea Rinnig - 03/24/2018


compress summary