As many of you are aware, USPS has argued that a number of claimants were untimely in submitting their initial claim form to the USPS P.O. Box in Greenwood Village, Colorado. USPS has argued that these identified claimants failed to meet the filing deadline beginning in approximately April/May 2018. We are providing this update regarding the latest developments in connection with the issue of alleged untimeliness.

By way of brief background, in or about January 2023, we attempted notification (via email and first-class mail, whenever possible) of each claimant represented by us who was identified by USPS as being potentially untimely. In other words, if you are represented by us and USPS identified your claim as allegedly untimely, then we reached out to you on that issue, and provided instructions to you. Of note, a majority of the claimants in this case WERE NOT identified by USPS as being allegedly untimely.

In June 2023, the Administrative Judge issued several Notices of Intent to Dismiss Untimely Claims of Relief. In these notices, the Administrative Judge states that unless claimants who were identified by USPS as potentially untimely can establish that their claims were timely or demonstrate good cause why they should be accepted even though they were untimely, such claims will be dismissed. Both parties have a deadline of June 30, 2023 to respond to the Administrative Judge.

The Administrative Judge has provided a spreadsheet to the parties, along with directions for organizing the information and documents in a specific manner for consideration by the Administrative Judge. Our offices are currently busy preparing such documentation/information for the Administrative Judge.

It should be emphasized that the Administrative Judge has not yet issued any final decisions regarding dismissal on the basis of untimeliness. We continue to advocate on behalf of all claimants who are represented by us.

If you have any questions about this issue, including whether your claim is on the untimely list, please contact us at [email protected] or 585-272-0540.

The Administrative Judge held another video status conference with us. The Administrative Judge said that the EEOC has plans in place to move forward with the review of claims, and that decisions are planned to be issued in the coming months. The Administrative Judge did not provide details on which claims would be decided first, other than to announce that any claims that had been withdrawn by claimants would be dismissed in the next few weeks or so. (We have been receiving orders from the EEOC dismissing claims that were withdrawn by claimants.)

The Agency attorneys filed a list of allegedly untimely claims in December 2022. We contacted each of our clients who were included on the list. We recently filed our response to the Agency’s defense, providing legal argument and additional evidence to rebut the Agency’s allegations. The Agency requested that the Administrative Judge make a decision on the untimeliness defense before issuing any other decisions. The Administrative Judge has not yet issued a ruling on this request by the Agency.

Based on the Administrative Judge’s comments, we believe that we should see some real progress in 2023 toward EEOC decisions on the individual claims in this case. As always, please continue to monitor this website for updates.

The Administrative Judge held another video status conference with us today, and shared some news about the EEOC’s plans for moving this case forward.

First, the Administrative Judge noted the concerns that we submitted regarding the EEOC’s mailing and website. The Administrative Judge thanked us for providing the information, and told us that the EEOC already addressed some of the concerns that we raised. For example, we reported that there had been some confusing information provided by the EEOC’s administrator. The judge informed us that the EEOC had addressed the issues to make sure that everything would be correct moving forward. While small logistical concerns routinely come up as part of large-scale administration processes, the Administrative Judge assured us that the EEOC is taking care to provide effective oversight and ensure a proper process.

Second, the Administrative Judge noted that review of claims has begun, and that she hopes to begin, if possible, issuing orders and decisions on claims in the coming months! The judge noted that there would need to be hearings to address questions on some claims, but that she believed that she had sufficient information on some claims to issue relief decisions. Nevertheless, please keep in mind that the Postal Service can, and probably will, appeal every decision by the Administrative Judge that is favorable to any claimant. We will continue to provide updates on this website when we learn additional information about orders or decisions being issued by the Administrative Judge on claims.

The Administrative Judge granted our request for additional time to submit evidence in response to the USPS argument that some claims missed the filing deadline. You should receive a mailing and e-mail from us if USPS has argued that your claim was untimely. If you have received that notice from us, please provide the requested information to us as soon as possible, but no later than February 10, 2023.

We believe that the Administrative Judge’s news from today means that we should see some real progress in 2023 toward a final result for your claim in this case. As always, please continue to monitor this website for any updates.

As a reminder, the EEOC website through the third-party administrator is not associated with our office. This means that if you have updated your contact information, including address, phone number, email address, and/or name, through the EEOC website (www.eeoc-nrpphase2.com) or by calling the third party number identified in the EEOC’s recent communication, you must also contact our office as well to update the information. You can give our office a call at 585-272-0540 or email us at [email protected].

Additionally, if you have recently updated your contact information with our office, please make sure to also update your information with the EEOC through the third party administrator. This can be done by going to the website, www.eeoc-nrpphase2.com, or by calling 877-465-4142.

Our attorneys have just learned that the EEOC has begun sending out notices to claimants regarding the EEOC’s website related to this case.  These notices from the EEOC are being issued via email, and apparently will also be sent from the EEOC by regular mail.

Important: the phone number referenced in the notice from the EEOC should read 1-877-465-4142, and the correct website link is as follows: https://www.eeoc-nrpphase2.com/Home/portalid/0.

According to the notice from the EEOC, each claimant has been provided a unique log-in identifier, and each claimant is being asked to confirm their contact information within 30 days.

Even though we have not had any role in the preparation of these notices from the EEOC, we want to do whatever we can to help the EEOC as it processes the claims for relief.  We strongly encourage timely cooperation if you receive the notice from the EEOC.

If you have trouble accessing the website referenced in the notice from the EEOC, you can call 877-465-4142 for assistance.

If you have not yet received the notice from the EEOC, please continue to be patient for a few more days.  Please continue to closely monitor the website www.nrpclassaction.com in the coming days as our attorneys continue to provide additional guidance.

The Administrative Judge held a video status conference today, and shared some news about the EEOC’s plans for moving this case forward.

First, the Judge announced that the special website created for this case will be posted and active in the coming weeks. She said that in the coming weeks, the EEOC will issue a notice to all of the claimants about the EEOC website. We do not yet know what will be on the EEOC website, or when this will all happen. When the EEOC notice is issued, we will post a copy of it on this website.

Second, the Administrative Judge also discussed the group of individuals that the Agency has now identified as untimely.  Meaning, the Agency has identified certain individuals they believe did not submit a timely claim to NEEOSIO. The Administrative Judge has asked our offices to provide any evidence that claims were timely.  In the coming weeks, our offices will be working with claimants to gather the necessary information for the Administrative Judge.

Third, the Judge stated that the EEOC plans to begin hearings on some claims sometime in the middle of 2023. She said that not all claims will receive a hearing, but that the EEOC would choose certain claims to be heard by EEOC Administrative Judges. We do not know which claimants will have their claims selected for a hearing, how the EEOC will make those selections, or how the hearings will work. When we have additional details on the EEOC’s hearing process for this case, we will post those details on this website.

We wish all of you a joyous holiday season. We sincerely hope that the Administrative Judge’s news from today means that we will all see some real progress in 2023 toward a final result for your claim in this case. We continue to fight for justice for all of the claimants in this case. And as always, please continue to monitor this website for any important updates.

Today we had another video conference call with the Administrative Judge. In advance of this conference, per the request of the Administrative Judge, our offices re-submitted all claimant related documents for her consideration. Our offices and the Postal Service also worked on adding additional claimant information to the spreadsheet. The call was fairly brief. The Judge asked a few clarifying questions about the submissions. The Judge also set a briefing schedule for a sanctions motion recently filed by our offices against the Postal Service. Our offices filed a motion for sanctions regarding the repeated failure of the Postal Service to comply with the Administrative Judge’s Order to produce a single spreadsheet with all claimant information and instead hiding behind an argument already rejected by the Judge. We will provide an update as soon as a decision is issued regarding our motion for sanctions.

Before concluding the call, the Administrative Judge indicated that the EEOC plans to have a website available in the coming weeks that will be specifically devoted to this case. She also indicated that the EEOC intends to send a notice out of such website. To the best of our knowledge, the EEOC has never created a website devoted to a single case. We currently have no information regarding the nature of the EEOC’s website or the notice, so unfortunately cannot yet provide answers to questions you may have, but we will provide a detailed update as soon as we have additional information.

As a general reminder: if you hired our law firms to represent you, we will respond to any and all requests by the EEOC or the Postal Service for information about your claim, and our offices will contact you if more information is needed. In other words, please do not contact the EEOC or the Postal Service about your claim without checking with us first. Please call us if you have any questions about this.

As 2022 nears its conclusion, we note that all of us had hoped for more progress in this case. Our goal, like yours, is to continue fighting for a fair and reasonable outcome. Put another way, for all claimants who hired our law firms, we will not cease our fight on your behalf until the Postal Service provides a fair and reasonable resolution, or there is a final EEOC decision on your claim, whichever occurs first. Unfortunately, the Postal Service continues to dispute every single claim. And, while the Administrative Judge continues her admirable efforts to make meaningful progress on this case, the simple fact remains that the EEOC has never dealt with litigation like this, with over 28,000 claimants. We are cautiously optimistic that 2023 will be a year of significant forward movement on your claims.

We remain extremely grateful to all who have hired us to represent their interests in this fight against the Postal Service. We have notched many milestone successes in this case since 2006. Even though we cannot predict with certainty every twist and turn on the road ahead, we remain convinced that a fair and reasonable outcome can be achieved, if we continue forward with persistence and resolve.

Please check this website frequently for updates. And please call or email us if you have questions.

Today, we had another video conference call with the Administrative Judge, lasting more than one hour. Like the other recent conferences, this one focused on the spreadsheet that the parties have been compiling for the last several months, at the direction of the Administrative Judge. The Administrative Judge largely asked her questions of the Agency, and ordered that certain missing information be added to the spreadsheet promptly. Our offices argued that the Agency’s failure to provide certain information fits a pattern of unnecessary delay on the Agency’s part. he Administrative Judge made very clear that further delays would not be well-received, and that she expects to see the completed spreadsheet by no later than November 18, 2022.

The next status conference is November 28, 2022. Please continue to check our website for updates.

On September 26, 2022, Phase 1 Class Counsel and the Agency had a video conference with the Administrative Judge where the spreadsheet project was discussed in detail.Prior to the conference, the EEOC began analyzing the data at an overview level, and was prepared with a series of questions for both sides about the submitted data.

The conference lasted a little over two hours. At the conclusion, the Administrative Judge directed both sides to submit certain revisions to the spreadsheet by no later than October 21, 2022. Among the revisions requested of the Agency was that all claimants without claim numbers are to be assigned claim numbers, and any columns or individuals previously removed by the Agency would be restored. In addition, the Administrative Judge has also requested that our offices eliminate a small number of duplicate entries. Furthermore, the Administrative Judge directed both parties to resubmit an additional copy of claimant documents submitted previously.

The next status conference is scheduled for October 31, 2022 at 11:00 am. Please continue to monitor our website for updates.

Since the Agency has produced their portion of the spreadsheet, our attorneys have not only been working on their portions of the spreadsheet, but have also begun raising concerns with the Agency as to deficiencies in their portion of the spreadsheet. Due to these deficiencies and in the interest of ensuring that the spreadsheet is complete and accurate as ordered by the EEOC, the Administrative Judge granted a brief 30 day extension to complete their portion of the spreadsheet and to continue addressing deficiencies with the Agency. In submitting such a request, Phase 1 Class Counsel took this opportunity to alert the EEOC about the deficiencies in the Agency’s portion of the spreadsheet. Phase 1 Class Counsel will seek further intervention from the EEOC in the event the Agency does not resolve the noted deficiencies.

Please continue to check the website for updates, but based on extension, the spreadsheet will now be completed with all claimants who have retained our law firm in this case, and submitted to the EEOC on September 18, 2022.