The Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act is a federal law passed by Congress in 2009 as a legislative response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber (2007), which did not allow workers to sue for race or gender discrimination under Title VII for pay discrimination if the employee did not file suit within 180 days of the discriminatory act.

Lily Ledbetter was the plaintiff in the case, who sued for discrimination after she found out that she received less pay than male counterparts. However, the Court ruled that many of her claims were time-barred.