How do most employment lawsuit cases end?

Of resolved cases, 44% settle, 31% are dismissed, 18% reach judgment.

How long does a employment lawsuit take?

Q: How long does a employment lawsuit take?

A employment lawsuit in U.S. federal court takes a median of 280 days from filing to resolution. 80% resolve between 145 days and 2.3 years. Based on 319,326 real cases.

Employment litigation — employment and labor suits (discrimination, FLSA, ERISA) in federal court — take a median of 280 days from filing to resolution, based on 319,326 real cases in the public federal court record. Most resolve between 145 days and 2.3 years — here's the full picture.

Median

280d

Faster 25%

145d

Slower 25%

1.4 yr

Slowest 10%

2.3 yr

Filing to termination · 319,326 cases · median 280 days

How employment lawsuit cases end

Of 290,110 resolved cases — the observed record, not a prediction of any one case.

44%settle· typically 267d

31%are dismissed· typically 208d

18%reach judgment· typically 1.1 yr

5%transfer or stay (incl. MDL)· typically 188d

2%are remanded· typically 84d

Employment litigation duration by court

Median time to resolution in the districts with the most employment lawsuit cases.

District	Cases	Median	Slowest 10%
S.D.N.Y.	19,739	295d	2.8 yr
C.D. Cal.	16,622	230d	1.8 yr
N.D. Ill.	16,378	257d	2.5 yr
S.D. Fla.	16,088	146d	1.0 yr
E.D.N.Y.	15,550	1.0 yr	3.2 yr
M.D. Fla.	13,547	214d	1.5 yr
E.D. Pa.	11,656	213d	1.7 yr
D.N.J.	9,377	289d	2.6 yr
N.D. Ga.	8,745	272d	2.2 yr
N.D. Cal.	8,224	312d	2.7 yr
S.D. Tex.	7,931	333d	2.2 yr
D. Md.	6,138	281d	2.4 yr
D. Minn.	5,789	281d	1.6 yr
E.D. Mich.	5,564	305d	2.3 yr
S.D. Ohio	5,539	327d	2.9 yr

Have a specific employment lawsuit?

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Other case types

Patent litigation Breach of contract Antitrust litigation Civil rights litigation Trademark & copyright Personal injury (federal)Other torts (federal)Social Security appeals Immigration litigation Prisoner petitions Real property (federal)Other federal statutory

Source: data/fjc/civil.parquet (Federal Judicial Center), cleaned by Tertius · model tertius-acta-3. Durations are filing to termination for U.S. federal civil cases. This is observed historical data, not a prediction of any specific case, and not legal advice. Tertius forecasts timing and disposition, never merits or damages.