Black Farmer Discrimination

The Pigford Case was a class action lawsuit brought by Timothy Pigford, a black farmer in Eastern North Carolina. The suit alleged discrimination against black farmers. The suit ended when the United States Agriculture Department entered into a Consent Decree in which they agreed to compensate black farmers who were victims of discrimination between January 1, 1981 and December 31, 1999.

The suit was the largest Civil Rights settlement in history with nearly $1 billion being paid to over 16,000 victims.

Unfortunately, about 70,000 black farmers were denied a review of their claim based on the merits because they did not submit a complete claim package by the filing deadline.

A provision of the Food Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 passed by the U.S. Congress on May 22, 2008, now allows farmers like yourself, that were previously not afforded an opportunity to have your Pigford claim of discrimination heard on the merits, to re-file and again seek relief in the form of damages in the amount of fifty-thousand ($50,000.00) dollars.

The legislation will allow all late filers to hire an attorney and file a new lawsuit. All such claims must be filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

A coalition of law firms in several states have banded together to bring these Pigford cases to court on behalf of farmers like you to have your claim handled in the fastest and fairest manner possible. Our law firms have collectively received the endorsement of both the National Black Farmer's Association (NBFA) and the Federation of Southern Cooperatives (FSC). We are also endorsed by the founder of the NBFA, Dr. John Boyd, Jr. We represent the largest known number of Black Farmers who may be eligible for compensation under new law passed by Congress and have begun cooperating on the process and working together for all Pigford "late-filer" claimants. We currently have begun filing claims for hundreds of farmers like you who meet the requirements of the Act.

The eligibility is very specific and there are no exceptions. To be eligible you must meet all of the following conditions:

1. You must have farmed or attempted to farm between January 1, 1981 and December 31, 1996. If you did not farm or attempt to farm between these dates you are not eligible.
2. You must have applied for a USDA farm credit or farm subsidy program and been denied or approved for an amount less than a comparable white farmer.
3. You must have filed a claim with the USDA prior to October 11, 1999 and been denied due to an incomplete or late application.

If you meet the above conditions, contact our partner, the Law Offices of James Scott Farrin by calling the national call center toll-free at 866-472-7826 or by visiting http://www.blackfarmerclaims.com.