Case Involving Firefighters Goes to Supreme Court

By ELIZABETH BRACKETT, WTTW

When a federal court found in 2005 that Chicago’s 1995 test for aspiring firefighters discriminated against minorities, the city did not disagree.

But rather than settle, the city appealed the ruling in 2007 on the ground that the suit was not filed in time.

Benna Solomon, a lawyer for the city, said, “Title VII requires that the charges be filed with E.E.O.C. within 300 days of when the discriminatory practice occurred.” The suit was filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 1998.

With up to $30 million in back pay on the line, the United States Supreme Court is set to hear the appeal in February, and both sides are digging in.

Judson H. Miner, the civil rights lawyer who mentored Barack Obama, is handling the case for the firefighters.

Mr. Miner and numerous aldermen have criticized the city’s appeal, but the city is standing firm.

“The irony is if the claim had been filed on time,” Ms. Solomon said, “we wouldn’t have to be here.”