Civil Litigation Division

General Litigation Sections: The four General Litigation sections defend the District of Columbia, its agencies, and its employees in hundreds of cases that are brought every year for monetary damages. The claims vary widely in subject matter. Cases include common-law claims alleging injuries of varying severity arising out of auto accidents, slips and falls, medical malpractice, and supervision of individuals in the custody or care of the District. In addition, the Division defends the District in constitutional and related common-law challenges to misconduct by police and/or other District employees, and against employment-discrimination claims brought under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act (as amended), the Americans with Disabilities Act, the DC Human Rights Act, and other statutes. One of the four sections also represents the District in breach-of-contract actions before the Contract Appeals Board.

Equity I Section: The Equity 1 Section defends the District of Columbia and its officials and employees in all large complex constitutional litigation brought against the District challenging the laws, regulations, policies and practices. These cases seek injunctive and other declaratory relief that impacts substantially on executive level agencies and their programs and policies. Cases often implicate claims under the Second Fourth, Fifth, and Eighth Amendments to the Constitution. EQ1 also defends all class action and other systemic challenges to the services, practices, conditions and/or care provided by District agencies and departments, and/or challenges to their component operations; civil actions seeking to enjoin enforcement of or otherwise challenge any District laws; and civil actions challenging a variety of regulatory actions taken by District agencies.  These cases vary from individual to class action complaints and from singular to system-wide challenges.  Because Equity I cases often address purported systemic problems with agency programs, practices, and policies, attorneys typically advise a number of constituent District agencies on matters related to pending litigation and/or matters in which orders awarding permanent injunctive relief have been entered. This includes Court oversight of various consent decrees and other ongoing challenges to court oversight or monitoring of executive-level agencies. Significant cases have included constitutional challenges to the District gun laws and to the implementation of Neighborhood Safety Zones, defense of Mayor Fenty’s take-over of the District of Columbia Public Schools, and defense of the law and implementing regulations requiring meters in District taxicabs.

Equity II Section: Equity Section II cases includes defense of the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS) and the Office of State Superintendent of Education (OSSE) in special education litigation seeking injunctive and other non-monetary relief. The Section, for example, handles actions challenging the adequacy of the District’s overall implementation of the Individuals With Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). These are often large and consequential cases (sometimes class actions) that generally challenge DCPS or OSSE policies and/or practices under IDEA; an example is a suit brought by the Public Defender Service asserting the absence of a statutorily-required special education program for youths incarcerated in the District. The Section also handles US District Court and DC Superior Court “appeals” of administrative special education decisions by DCPS Hearing Officers. These are appellate-like cases, typically are resolved on summary judgment motions, based on an administrative record. Equity II also handles preliminary injunction proceedings before a Special Master of the US District Court, pursuant to special procedures established in a long-standing special education class action (Blackman v. District of Columbia) – procedures that require an expedited accumulation of information concerning a student’s circumstances and DCPS’ asserted failure to have satisfied a court or administrative decision, and a hearing presentation of evidence and argument.

Public Advocacy Section: The Public Advocacy Section investigates and litigates cases in which the residents of the District of Columbia or the DC Government are harmed by companies or individuals engaging in illegal or fraudulent activities. The Section prosecutes a wide range of cases, including obtaining damages and/or injunctive relief for violations of the antitrust laws, consumer protection laws, and antifraud laws. Recent examples of the Section’s work include the recovery of millions of dollars from pharmaceutical manufacturers for their improper marketing of certain drugs for uses other than those approved by the FDA; implementation of stricter measures to ensure that cigarettes are not sold by local retailers to underage smokers; and litigation against various companies involved in local home mortgage scams. Other examples of the Section’s work include a lawsuit on behalf of the District government against a financial institution in which millions of dollars of government funds were improperly withdrawn and diverted to personal accounts, against a major hospital and several Medicaid providers and actions brought to protect District residents and organizations from fraudulent activities. The Section also routinely receives and informally and efficiently resolves many consumer complaints involving products and services sold in the District.

Civil Enforcement Section: The Civil Enforcement Section (“CES”) has responsibility for affirmative litigation which spans a wide range of matters before the District of Columbia Superior Court (DCSC) and administrative tribunals seeking enforcement of the District’s laws and regulations. The CES brings affirmative actions relating to: civil forfeiture of seized assets arising from activities involving weapons possession, prostitution, drugs, and gambling; occupational and professional licenses; local, small and disadvantaged business licenses; educational licenses; building and zoning permits; and alcoholic beverage control (ABC) licenses. These matters involve the denial of applications, suspension or revocation of licenses, the imposition of fines, and other disciplinary action. The CES’s affirmative civil litigation matters also include probate and escheat proceedings; Medicaid and other health care assistance recovery; collection matters; landlord and tenant actions; liquidation, dissolution and rehabilitation proceedings; and unlawful discrimination. The CES also handles a very small number of defensive litigation matters, particularly administrative appeals to the DCSC.