support animals, and failed to engage in an interactive process to verify that tenants had genuine disabilities. The firms also lacked a uniform reasonable accommodation policy and failed to train their leasing professionals at their apartment communities about fair housing responsibilities toward people with disabilities. As a result, some tenants were evicted from their apartments or had their lease offers revoked. Others were forced to pay additional rent. In addition to paying compensation to plaintiffs and reimbursing DFEH for attorneys’ fees, the companies have also agreed to adopt a comprehensive reasonable accommodation policy, provide training to employees, and hire a Compliance Manager to review requests for reasonable accommodation. “We are pleased that The Irvine Co. cooperated with us to achieve this settlement, which compensates the plaintiffs and complainants for the harm they suffered and contains equitable relief designed to ensure that all tenants and applicants with disabilities will receive equal housing opportunities, including reasonable accommodations, as required by law,” said Kevin Kish, Director of DFEH. The Settlement Agreement also clarifies the right of the companies to request reliable third-party verification to show the need for a service animal. It also clarifies that ID cards, certificates for a “registered service animal” or online services providing “ESA prescription” letters for sale are not sufficient verification. DFEH v. Sandhu Brothers Poultry and Farming et al. On January 25, 2016, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) announced it had obtained a $75,000 settlement in a sexual harassment case filed on behalf of a female farmworker who worked for Sandhu Brothers, a sweet potato farming operation in Stanislaus County. The case stemmed from a complaint by a female farmworker that she was harassed by a supervisor while working for Sandhu Brothers. The complaint alleged that the supervisor exposed his genitals to members of the crew, masturbated in front of the workers while driving a tractor, and made unwanted sexual advances to several female crew members. The complainant also alleged that she was groped by the supervisor and was fired after complaining to the company. A separate sexual harassment complaint by another worker involving the same company and the same supervisor was filed and resolved with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 2013. After the allegations were investigated and substantiated by the DFEH, a complaint was filed in Stanislaus Superior Court in Modesto, California. The case was settled January 19, 2016. It