13.6.2 Statute of Limitations

Private civil actions must be filed no later than 2 years after the occurrence or termination of the discriminatory practice.1  HUD administrative complaints may interrupt or toll the statute of limitations. Claims under 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981 have a 4-year statute of limitations.2  Claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1982 have a 1-year statute of limitations.3  Claims under the Louisiana Open Housing Act are subject to a 2-year statute of limitations.4

• 142 U.S.C. § 3613(a)(1)(A).
• 2Jones v. R.R. Donnelly & Sons, 541 U.S. 369 (2004); see 28 U.S.C. § 1658.
• 3See Goodman v. Lukens Steel Co., 482 U.S. 656, 660–62 (1987); Bradley v. Carydale Enters., 707 F. Supp. 217, 220 (E.D. Va. 1989).
• 4La. R.S. 51:2613. Many subsidized housing leases will have a contract provision whereby the landlord agrees not to unlawfully discriminate. Contract claims are subject to a 10-year prescriptive period in Louisiana. However, the courts will probably apply the shorter statute of limitations for FHA violations (1, 2, or 4 years as applicable), torts (1 year), and crimes of violence (2 years). See, e.g., Sterling v. Urban Prop. Co., 562 So. 2d 1120 (La. App. 4 Cir. 1990).