Welcome to the Love v. Vilsack Women Farmers litigation website. The purpose of this site is to provide information regarding the status of the litigation and to connect with those who have an interest in the litigation and pending legislation that aims at addressing the women farmers’ claims.

The lawsuit Love v. Vilsack, Case No. 1:00CV02502 (U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia) was initially filed on October 19, 2000 by a number of women farmers against the U.S. Department of Agriculture for gender discrimination in the administration of the USDA's farm loan programs.

The plaintiffs sought to have the case certified as a class action on behalf of women farmers and prospective women farmers nationwide who were discriminated against in attempting to obtain farm loans or loan servicing from the Farm Service Agency (FSA) or its predecessor Farmer's Home Administration (FmHA) from 1981 to December 31, 1996 and from October 19, 1998 to the present.

Click on Current Status of Love v. Vilsack for more information on the status of the litigation.

UPDATE (January 27, 2012):  The attorneys for plaintiffs in the Love case sent a letter to USDA Secretary Thomas Vilsack and Associate Attorney General Thomas Perrelli, endorsing the changes made to the administrative claims program, and urging them to make additional changes to ensure that the program is fair and provides appropriate relief for women farmers.

UPDATE (January 20, 2012):  USDA filed an updated “Framework” document, which describes the administrative claims program USDA expects to offer women farmers.  USDA also issued a press release on January 25, 2012.  Those interested in the details of the program may review USDA’s Framework, which was filed as an exhibit to a status report in the Love case.  The claims program will not begin until USDA has selected a claims administrator and announced a start date.  After that, those who wish to file a claim will have 180 days to do so.

UPDATE (December 23, 2011):  Several Senators and Members of Congress wrote a letter to President Obama, urging that he insist on changes to the administrative claims program to ensure that the program offered to women farmers is fair and equitable.

UPDATE (April 7, 2011): The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, along with 17 affiliated organizations, sent a letter to President Obama urging the White House to demand improvements to the administrative claims program that will be offered to women and Hispanic farmers by the government.

NOTICE: Individuals, including attorneys, who are or may be affiliated with the National Womens Farming Association (NWFA), have been traveling around the country to speak with women about discrimination by the USDA and about the Love case. The lead counsel in the Love case do not seek to discourage the NWFA’s efforts to assist female farmers. They do wish to clarify, however, that this website, www.womenfarmers.com, is the official website run by lead counsel in the Love v. Vilsack case, and not the website run by the NWFA (www.womenfarmers.net).

IMPORTANT UPDATE (February 25, 2011): USDA has announced today that it is launching a program for resolving women farmers and Hispanic farmers’ discrimination claims against the agency. We await additional information from USDA regarding the specifics of the program, but we anticipate that it will include USDA opening a “call center” for receiving names and contact information from potential claimants. (Click here for the USDA’s press announcement.) USDA then plans to disseminate the claims packages to the names it has gathered and to make the claims package publically available for others. Contacting the call center is strictly voluntary, and failure to do so will not prevent a woman farmer from being able to file a claim with USDA through its claim resolution process, or to pursue a claim through other means. The government has stated that the program will provide at least $1.33 billion in compensation and up to $160 million in farm debt relief to eligible women and Hispanic farmers, and that it will provide up to $50,000 for each woman farmer claimant who is successful in establishing that USDA discriminatorily denied her a loan or loan servicing during certain time periods between 1981 and 2000. In addition, the government’s program provides for tax and debt relief. Please feel free to contact us if you have questions, or to contact your counsel for advice on involvement in USDA’s call center and/or claims resolution process, or for them to communicate with USDA on your behalf. Click here for USDA’s web site, www.farmerclaims.gov, to get more information on the government’s claims process and/or to register to receive a claims packet. The web site includes a summary description of USDA’s program, and a notice from USDA to farmers who may qualify for the program.

Please click here for a press release issued by Arent Fox, counsel for women farmers in Love v. Vilsack, in response to the USDA’s announcement.

Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro and Congresswoman Anna Eshoo introduced the Equality for Women Farmers Act, H.R. 4264, on December 10, 2009. This landmark legislation is aimed at addressing the long-standing discrimination experienced by women farmers in USDA's farm loan programs. Click here for more information on the legislation.

Contact us for more information