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G. Requesting Payment of Fees, Costs, and Sanctions Assessed against EEOC

The Commission must submit an application for payment to the Department of the Treasury, Financial Management Services (Treasury/FMS), when a court assesses attorney's fees, costs, or sanctions against it. Litigation Management Services (LMS) in OGC-HQ and the EEOC's Debt Collection Officer in the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) serve as intermediaries between the legal unit and Treasury/FMS. Here is the process:

1. Prepare Application Package and Submit to LMS

The first step the legal unit attorney must take to obtain payment of attorney's fees, costs, or sanctions assessed against the Commission is to prepare an application package requesting payment and send it to his or her LMS liaison for review. In order to ensure that payment is submitted and processed in a timely manner, the legal unit must provide the following information to LMS:

  • brief summary of the case, including a statement that no appeal will be taken
  • name and address of defendant
  • tax id # (SSN or EIN) of the defendant (please note that FMS will make checks payable only to defendants, not their attorneys).
  • name and address of defendant's counsel
  • name and address of recipient of the check

The legal unit should attach the following documents to the memorandum:

  • copy of the complaint
  • copy of the judgment, if applicable
  • copy of any court order assessing fees, sanctions, or costs
  • copy of bill of costs, if applicable
  • copy of clerk of court assessment of costs, if applicable

2. Review by Litigation Management Services

The second step in obtaining payment of attorney's fees, costs, or sanctions assessed against the Commission is LMS review of the application package prepared by the legal unit. Once the package is complete, the LMS liaison will forward it to the EEOC's Debt Collection Officer.

3. Review by Debt Collection Officer and Submission to Treasury/FMS

The third step is review of the application package by the EEOC's Debt Collection Officer in OCFO/AS's Financial Management Service. The Debt Collection Officer is responsible for reviewing and forwarding the legal unit's completed package to Treasury/FMS.

4. Processing by Treasury/FMS

Once the EEOC's Debt Collection Officer files the application for fees, costs, or sanction with Treasury/FMS, the EEOC has little control over the process. FMS processing normally takes 4 to 6 weeks, but can take as long as several months. FMS will not issue a check if the package is incomplete; therefore, it is critical that all of the necessary information and documents be provided at the outset. If payment to opposing counsel is delayed, defendant may move for – and may be awarded – an interest payment on the initial award amount.

If you need additional information, please contact your LMS liaison.