The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced that it will receive an additional $23 million in 2010 in order to help resolve the tens of thousands of backlogged cases it currently faces. The agency, which reportedly has seen a 25 percent reduction in staff levels in the last several years, saw a 35 percent increase backlogged cases last year.

Former EEOC attorney Merrily Archer told the legal news website Law.com that, “Even under the Clinton administration when I worked there, the EEOC struggled with under-funding. It was not unusual for us to conduct depositions by telephone to avoid travel, to not have the money to retain experts. We litigated our cases on a shoestring. Our furniture was hand-me-downs from the military and other federal agencies.”

Meanwhile, corporate attorneys are looking forward to the EEOC resolving cases that may have been filed up to three years ago—most of which, they hope, will be dismissed.