“It is time to get serious… it is time to get this resolved,” said Judge Gladys Kessler at the status hearing of the landmark discrimination lawsuit Diamond Ventures, LLC brought against SBA and its Small Business Investment Company Program (S.B.I.C.).
“We appreciate that America is finding out about these atrocities and it is noteworthy that the New York Times reporter Robb Mandelbaum featured an article in his column ‘You’re The Boss’ that reported on the Court Hearing and Senate Hearing on similar issues on the same day,” said Erinn Dumas, Diamond Ventures, LLC spokesperson.
District Court Judge Kessler ordered SBA and Diamond Ventures into mediation for a period of 60 days to settle the seven year long discrimination lawsuit. To tightly monitor the proceedings, Judge Kessler requires an update on mediation on May 15th and while there is a 60 day mediation period, she will examine the status again “at the end of May” for progress.
“This has been a long, hard battle; hopefully we can reach a settlement agreement and finally resolve this lawsuit,” says C. Earl Peek, managing partner of Diamond Ventures, LLC. “Our hope is resolution of the matter towards our claims and also that SBA will consider corrective measures other program to include others.” Bill Heyman of Tydings & Rosenberg, Diamond’s attorneys on the matters, noted that, “We are ready for a jury trial and will push for an aggressive schedule this fall if we cannot amicably resolve these claims during mediation. Judge Kessler’s opinion outlines findings in, that if substantiated at trial, would show that SBA doles out less than 2% of its monies to African-Americans in the SBIC program.”
“I am glad to see awareness being raised around this issue. Senators Landrieu (D – La) and Snowe’s (R – Maine) hearing on barriers to minorities and access capital on the same day could not have come at a better time,” says Peek. “Hopefully, we have set precedence with this issue, and other minority-owned businesses will not have to face the injustice that we experienced.”
For more information on the Diamond vs. SBA lawsuit, visit www.dcd.uscourts.gov or www.sbalitigation.com.
Source: Diamond Ventures, LLC
