Former Gold Coast player Joel Wilkinson's complaint of systemic racism by the AFL has been filed to the Human Rights Commission (HRC).
Wilkinson's legal representatives, Shine Lawyers, electronically filed a 53-page complaint on Monday morning and it's now in the hands of the commission.
The HRC will now handle a mediation process between both parties that is expected to take up to six to eight weeks.
If there's no resolution Wilkinson, who played 26 games for the Suns from 2011-13, can decide whether the case goes to the Federal Court.
The 26-year-old rocked the AFL fraternity on Thursday when it was revealed he was suing the league for racial vilification and sexual harassment during his career.
Wilkinson was racially abused by Western Bulldogs rival Justin Sherman in his debut match as a 19-year-old in 2011. He was also vilified by a Collingwood member the season after.
He has alleged his career was taken from him and his rights were violated due to racism, religious vilification and racially-motivated sexual harassment.
"I am here to hold the AFL accountable and stand against injustice ... this is extremely systematic across the AFL," he told reporters on Thursday as he read out a public statement.
Wilkinson stressed he was looking forward to his day in court after prior talks with the league had broken down.
The AFL initially responded to the complaints by saying Wilkinson previously shared his experiences of racial abuse in videos produced with the league.
But Wilkinson said it was disrespectful to the gravity of the situation to deny his experiences and "claim one three-minute video was sufficient".
Western Bulldogs president and prominent Melbourne lawyer Peter Gordon, often among the AFL's fiercest critics, will act for the league in the case.
After Gold Coast delisted him at the end of the 2013 season, Wilkinson played two seasons in the VFL with the Northern Blues.
He pursued a career in the NFL and signed with the Arizona Cardinals in 2016 but was cut after three months.
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