Title VII damages caps limit the combined compensatory and punitive damages in an intentional employment discrimination case to $50,000, $100,000, $200,000 or $300,000, depending on how many employees the employer has. This Title VII damages cap calculator applies the limits in 42 U.S.C. 1981a to your numbers, keeps back pay outside the cap as the statute requires, and handles the ADA, GINA, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the Equal Pay Act and race claims under section 1981.
The cap is often misunderstood. It does not limit back pay or interest on back pay, and it does not apply to past out-of-pocket losses. It covers future pecuniary losses, emotional pain and other nonpecuniary losses, and punitive damages, added together, for each complaining party.
Employees in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year.
For example, job search or medical costs already paid.
| Employees | Cap on compensatory (future pecuniary and nonpecuniary) plus punitive damages |
|---|---|
| 15 to 100 | $50,000 |
| 101 to 200 | $100,000 |
| 201 to 500 | $200,000 |
| More than 500 | $300,000 |
The statute counts employees in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, and the limit applies for each complaining party. Title VII's definition of an employer requires fifteen or more employees, so the caps start there. The court applies the cap after the verdict: 1981a says the court shall not inform the jury of the limitations.
The EEOC lists the bases for compensatory and punitive damages as intentional discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex (including pregnancy, transgender status and sexual orientation), religion, disability or genetic information.
Capped: future pecuniary losses + emotional pain, suffering, inconvenience, mental anguish, loss of enjoyment of life and other nonpecuniary losses + punitive damages
Not capped: back pay, interest on back pay and other relief under section 706(g) of the Civil Rights Act
A jury awards $80,000 in back pay, $5,000 in past out-of-pocket costs, $20,000 in future pecuniary losses, $150,000 for emotional distress and $250,000 in punitive damages.
With $25,000 in back pay, $60,000 for emotional distress and $40,000 in punitive damages, the capped categories total $100,000 but the cap for 15 to 100 employees is $50,000. The estimate is $25,000 + $50,000 = $75,000.
With $50,000 in back pay, $400,000 in emotional distress and $500,000 in punitive damages, the punitive damages drop out because 1981a does not allow them against a government, and the emotional distress award is capped at $300,000, for an estimated $350,000.
Under the ADEA there are no compensatory or punitive damages. With $60,000 in back pay and a willful violation, liquidated damages equal to the back pay bring the estimate to $120,000.
Punitive damages under 1981a require proof that the employer engaged in discrimination with malice or with reckless indifference to the federally protected rights of an aggrieved individual. They are not available against a government, government agency or political subdivision, so for public employers the cap applies only to compensatory damages.
Compensatory and punitive damages under 1981a are available only for unlawful intentional discrimination, not for an employment practice that is unlawful because of its disparate impact. In a disparate impact case, the remedies are back pay and the other relief under section 706(g), without the capped damages. For settlement ranges by state, see wrongful termination settlement amounts by state or estimate a claim with the wrongful termination settlement calculator.
Before suing under Title VII, the ADA or GINA, you generally file a charge with the EEOC. The EEOC says you need to file within 180 calendar days from the day the discrimination took place, extended to 300 calendar days if a state or local agency enforces a law that prohibits employment discrimination on the same basis. For age discrimination, the deadline is extended to 300 days only if a state law and a state agency cover age discrimination. Missing the deadline can end the claim before any cap matters.
Under 42 U.S.C. 1981a(b)(3), the combined compensatory damages for future pecuniary and nonpecuniary losses plus punitive damages may not exceed $50,000 for employers with 15 to 100 employees, $100,000 for 101 to 200, $200,000 for 201 to 500 and $300,000 for more than 500 employees, for each complaining party.
No. Section 1981a says compensatory damages under that section do not include backpay, interest on backpay or any other relief authorized under section 706(g) of the Civil Rights Act, so back pay is recovered in addition to the capped damages.
No. Section 1981a allows punitive damages against a respondent other than a government, government agency or political subdivision, and only when the employer acted with malice or reckless indifference to federally protected rights.
The ADEA does not allow compensatory or punitive damages at all. The EEOC says victims of intentional age discrimination may receive liquidated damages equal to the back pay award, and 29 U.S.C. 626(b) allows liquidated damages only for willful violations.
No. Section 1981a(c) says the court shall not inform the jury of the limitations. The court reduces an award that exceeds the cap after the verdict.
The EEOC says you generally need to file a charge within 180 calendar days from the day the discrimination took place. The deadline is extended to 300 calendar days if a state or local agency enforces a law prohibiting employment discrimination on the same basis, with narrower rules for age discrimination.