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
Companies that hire employees and engage independent contractors in California should brace themselves for an even greater slowdown in background checks that include criminal record searches in Los Angeles County. This will...more
On January 11, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued two “advisory opinions” addressing the CFPB’s views of the obligations of consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) under the Fair Credit Reporting Act...more
A magistrate judge in the Northern District of Georgia recently recommended granting summary judgment in a Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) case in favor of a background reporting company on the grounds that a report given...more
FTC Finalizes Settlement with 1Health.io For Allegations It Failed to Protect Customers’ DNA Data - On September 6, 2023, the Federal Trade Commission’s agreement with the genetic testing firm 1Health.io Inc. – formerly...more
On September 11, the FTC announced that it had reached a settlement with two “people-search” companies which would resolve charges that the companies had engaged in practices that violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act...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
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) updated Final Rule on the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) Summary of Rights includes such non-substantive changes as corrections to contact information for various...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
On March 17, 2023, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published an updated version of the publication entitled, “A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act,” which is also called the “Summary of...more
In March of this year, the three major nationwide credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) announced there would be substantial changes to medical collection debt reporting coming this summer in an effort...more
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently issued a legal Advisory in early July 2022, intending to protect the privacy rights of individuals subject to background checks by third-party consumer reporting...more
On June 27, 2022, Governor Ron DeSantis signed “Miya’s Law” (SB 898) into law which is designed to increase safety for residential tenants and significantly impacts the duties of Florida landlords and property managers....more
[co-author: David Anthony] In 2020, the appellate courts had numerous opportunities to weigh in on many unanswered questions that remain in litigation after over 50 years since the statute was first enacted. The case law...more
Addressing a recurring issue bedeviling the background screening industry, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit confirmed on December 4 that it is not inaccurate for a consumer reporting agency (CRA) to report a...more
The case law surrounding the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is ever-changing, and staying up to date on certain, key statutory definitions is a core compliance task for any company subject to the FCRA....more
Most employers are aware that in order to conduct a third-party background search on an employee or applicant, they must obtain advance authorization and comply with the notice requirements of the federal Fair Credit...more
Since 2011, the number of Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) lawsuits filed annually has continued to climb. The data demonstrates that employers struggle with compliance, especially regarding the FCRA’s disclosure...more
The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) applies to employers who obtain “consumer reports” from a “consumer reporting agency” for employment purposes. A “consumer report” is one that has information bearing on the...more
The Situation: The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit considered whether an employer's consumer report disclosure form, which contained a combination of disclosures mandated by the Fair Credit Reporting Act...more
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals interprets the FCRA - On January 29, 2019, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a far-reaching opinion that will likely impact the hiring process of prospective employers who conduct...more
On January 29, 2019, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a prospective employer does not satisfy the Fair Credit Reporting Act’s (“FCRA”) stand-alone disclosure requirement when it provides job applicants with a...more
Albert Einstein believed “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.” The Ninth Circuit seems to agree. In Gilberg v. Cal. Check Cashing Stores, LLC, No. 17-16263, 2019 WL 347027 (Ninth Cir. Jan. 29,...more
The last few years have brought an increasing number of class action lawsuits filed against employers alleging non-compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act ("FCRA"). As part of an evolving trend of narrowly interpreting...more
Schuh v. American Express Bank, FSB, 2018 WL 3751467 (S.D. Fla. May 3, 2018), provides a good example of the interplay between the FCRA’s requirement that consumer reporting agencies (“CRAs”) following reasonable procedures...more
In Mcinerney v. Eighth Judicial District Court, 2018 WL 6308727 (D. Nev. Dec. 3, 2018), Plaintiff Michael Mcinerney brought a negligence claim under 15 U.S.C. § 1681i against HireRight based upon its reporting of his criminal...more