Civil Rights & Disputes in Mississippi

Like Georgia, Mississippi is one of the few states without a comprehensive private-sector anti-discrimination statute. The Mississippi Employment Protection Act and related laws do not create broad civil rights protections for private employees. Workers must file with the EEOC within 180 days of the discriminatory act, because Mississippi lacks a FEPA-qualified state agency. There is no state human rights commission accepting private-sector employment discrimination complaints. Mississippi does not have explicit statewide protections for sexual orientation or gender identity. Mississippi does not have an anti-SLAPP statute. The defamation statute of limitations in Mississippi is one year under Miss. Code Ann. Section 15-1-35. Emotional distress claims require proof of extreme and outrageous conduct under Mississippi common law.