The Risks in Background Checks
Current Trends in FCRA Litigation - The Consumer Finance Podcast
AGG Talks: Background Screening - Ban the Box and Fair Chance Hiring Laws: The Year in Review
AGG Talks: Background Screening - Redaction of Identifiers by the Courts Update, Breaking News from California
AGG Talks: Background Screening - Redaction of Identifiers by the Courts in Michigan and California Pose Challenges for Background Checks
You’ve gone through the hiring process, sent out an offer letter, and all that remains is the background check. But what happens when the results raise a red flag? You may decide to rescind the offer, but it’s not as simple...more
On March 14, 2024, the Massachusetts House of Representatives passed legislation that would prohibit employers from obtaining or using a true credit report for employment purposes. The bill is expected to pass the Senate and...more
Since California’s enactment of the Fair Chance Act (“Act”) over six years ago, California’s private and county employers with five or more employees have become well-acquainted with the Act’s general prohibition of employers...more
A scary surprise is fun to encounter when you are in a haunted house at a Halloween event, but not so much fun when you are performing a background check on a potential employee. Even worse is finding out after the fact that...more
The California Civil Rights Council recently amended the regulations interpreting California’s 2018 Fair Chance Act, which go into effect October 1, 2023. The new regulations add restrictions, make clarifications, and...more
For many years, California employers have been subject to the state’s Fair Chance Act, which (in a nutshell) requires employers to...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has released an updated version of the "Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act" notice that all employers must provide to employees before taking any adverse action...more
Employers should promptly update their Summary of Consumer Rights notice provided to applicants and workers before taking adverse employment action based on their background check reports, thanks to a new rule about to take...more
The continued filing of lawsuits against employers under the FCRA underscores the need for in-house counsel, Human Resources, and Talent Acquisition to comply with the statute, especially the “pre-adverse action” notice...more
On April 4, 2022, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit joined the Ninth Circuit in holding that a plaintiff lacked Article III standing to prosecute her statutory claims under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)...more
More than 90% of employers use some form of a background screening on applicants or employees when making employment decisions. There can be several reasons for using them: ensuring safety in the workplace; reducing exposure...more
On March 23, 2021, Governor J.B. Pritzker signed a bill (SB1480) that amends the Illinois Human Rights Act (IHRA) to, among other things, impose new requirements on employers that perform criminal history checks on their...more
Further restrictions on New York City employers’ ability to take adverse action against applicants or employees based on their criminal history are on the horizon. The New York City Council just passed a bill which will...more
Class action litigation brought under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is on the rise—particularly in California—after the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued a 2017 decision applying a hypertechnical...more
On March 20, 2020, the Ninth Circuit issued its third opinion on the question of when an employer’s background check disclosure satisfies the so-called “standalone” disclosure requirement in the Fair Credit Reporting Act...more
With the start of a new year—and a new decade—employers in San Francisco, California, Waterloo, Iowa, and Grand Rapids, Michigan, must follow new “ban-the-box” laws restricting their use of criminal records in hiring and...more
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Part II: Offer Letters and Background Checks - In a previous article, we addressed certain pitfalls for numerous foreign employers seeking to hire personnel in New York State (regarding advertising and interviewing for a...more
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) provides federally-imposed limitations on all employers who seek information from a Consumer Reporting Agency about an applicant or employee for use in making an employment decision,...more
If you conduct pre-hire background checks, you know you have to comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) or risk trouble (called lawsuits). Part of that compliance is providing notice to the applicant if you are going...more
On Sept. 12, the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau issued an updated model disclosure form, required under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) as of Sept. 21, 2018. The revised “Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair...more
Employers across the country should dust off their background check policies and forms and be mindful of recent developments related to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)....more
Employers, understandably, want to know as much as possible about job candidates, and many look to background checks as a source of relevant information. Unfortunately, the laws governing employer use of background checks,...more
The FCRA is not a classic employment law, but regulates the procurement and use of background checks by employers. Before procuring a background check from a consumer reporting agency (CRA), the employer must disclose its...more