News & Analysis as of

Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) Civil Rights Act Reverse Discrimination

Morrison & Foerster LLP

Texas Federal Court Vacates Gender Identity-Related Sections of the EEOC’s 2024 Harassment Guidance but Other Sections Remain...

On May 15, 2025, a federal district court in Texas vacated sections of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s (EEOC or the “Commission”) 2024 Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace (the “2024 Enforcement...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

Water Cooler Talk: ‘Late Night’ Shows DEI Is More Than Optics

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The 2019 film “Late Night,” written by and starring Mindy Kaling, tells the story of a late-night talk show host, Katherine Newbury, played by Emma Thompson, whose all-male, all-white writing staff scrambles to add a female...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

Supreme Court Strikes Down Sixth Circuit Rule Heightening Discrimination Standard for Members of Majority Groups

Troutman Pepper Locke on

A recent Supreme Court decision clarified that discrimination claims brought by members of majority groups in so-called “reverse discrimination” cases cannot be subject to a heightened evidentiary burden. In Ames v. Ohio...more

Vinson & Elkins LLP

Justice Department’s “Civil Rights Fraud Initiative” Increases False Claims Act Risks Related to Alleged Discrimination

Vinson & Elkins LLP on

On May 19, 2025, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a memorandum announcing the creation of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Civil Rights Fraud Initiative (the Initiative), which directs DOJ attorneys to utilize the...more

Venable LLP

The Supreme Court Says Employers Can Be Liable for Discriminating Against Majority Groups

Venable LLP on

Earlier this month, in a long-awaited ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court sided with a straight white woman who claimed to have lost out on two positions to LGBT candidates and was also demoted in favor of them. ...more

Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani

SCOTUS Unanimously Rejects Heightened Burden for Majority-Group Discrimination Claims

On June 5, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of petitioner, Marlean Ames, a heterosexual woman, who commenced a reverse discrimination case against her former employer, the Ohio Department of Youth...more

Williams Mullen

Supreme Court Rejects Heightened Evidentiary Standards for So-Called “Reverse Discrimination” Claims

Williams Mullen on

On June 5, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that plaintiffs bringing discrimination claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) cannot be required to satisfy a heightened evidentiary...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Justices Reject Higher Standard for “Reverse Discrimination” Claims

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on

The United States Supreme Court has held that the evidentiary standards for “reverse discrimination” claims under federal employment law must be the same as those set for claims brought by members of minority groups....more

Mayer Brown

DOJ and EEOC Issue Guidance Regarding “Unlawful DEI-Related Discrimination”

Mayer Brown on

On March 19, 2025, the US Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) issued a joint press release announcing two technical assistance documents addressing diversity, equity, and...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

Navigating DEI in a Shifting Legal Landscape

Troutman Pepper Locke on

Workplace diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs face more scrutiny than ever in light of President Trump’s recent executive orders regarding DEI policies and programs across the public and private sectors, recent...more

Cozen O'Connor

How the EEOC/DOJ Is Defining and Investigating DEI Initiatives and What Employers Should Do

Cozen O'Connor on

On March 19, 2025, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) jointly issued informal guidance called, “What To Do if You Experience Discrimination Related to DEI at Work.” While...more

Vedder Price

EEOC Technical Guidance Warns Against DEI-Related Discrimination at Work

Vedder Price on

On March 19, 2025, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued two technical assistance guidance documents (found here and here) focused on educating “the public about how well-established civil rights...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

7 tips for employers about DEI programs

From the feds. This week, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Department of Justice issued technical assistance materials on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, including one document titled...more

Whiteford

Employment Law Update: Supreme Court Hears Argument on Reverse Discrimination Claim with Implications for DEI

Whiteford on

Just as employers are reconsidering their approach to DEI and the myriad of potential risks such policies could present under current administration enforcement priorities, the Supreme Court recently heard arguments in a case...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

DOJ Targets Private-Sector DEI Programs: What Employers Need to Know

Fox Rothschild LLP on

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has set its sights on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, signaling heightened enforcement risks for employers. In a memorandum, Attorney General Pam Bondi directed the DOJ to...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

What Employers Can Expect From EEOC Personnel Changes

In the recent transition of presidential power, President Donald Trump issued a number of executive orders and has taken actions regarding administrative personnel that have a direct impact on private employers who interact...more

Cozen O'Connor

Costco Urged by Republican AGs to Repeal DEI Policies

Cozen O'Connor on

A group of 19 Republican AGs announced that they have sent a letter to Costco Wholesale Corporation, warning that its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies may violate state and federal civil rights laws prohibiting...more

Hogan Lovells

Trump Executive Order targets private-sector DEI policies and practices

Hogan Lovells on

After assuming office, the Trump administration acted swiftly to roll back allegedly illegal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies. On January 21, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order titled “Ending...more

McGlinchey Stafford

Will DEI Programs Become Extinct Under the Trump Administration?

McGlinchey Stafford on

In an effort to embrace diversity and inclusion, many employers established Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs. The look of these programs varied from company to company; however, many of the programs...more

Conn Maciel Carey LLP

Employers Can Expect a more business-friendly EEOC in a Second Trump Administration

Conn Maciel Carey LLP on

Under the Biden administration, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”), the agency that administers and enforces federal workplace civil rights law, advanced numerous employee-friendly initiatives, with a...more

Cozen O'Connor

Democratic AGs Pen Letter Opposing Walmart’s Decision to End Diversity Initiatives

Cozen O'Connor on

A group of 13 Democratic AGs wrote a letter to Walmart’s President and CEO expressing concern about Walmart’s announcement that it will end certain aspects of its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives....more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Eighth Circuit Rejects Employees' Challenge to Equity Training

Federal courts are facing an increasing number of lawsuits from employees claiming that their rights were violated when they were required to attend diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training. These suits have used...more

Constangy, Brooks, Smith & Prophete, LLP

Five tactics to dispel negative stereotypes of DEI

Wait, not everything about DEI on the internet is true? For organizations that desire to retain or implement DEI practices, it is vital to address common misperceptions or negative stereotypes about DEI. When DEI policies...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

Mandatory Unconscious Bias Training Did Not Violate Title VII

Employers are facing an increasing number of Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charges and lawsuits from white employees who claim that exposure to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) training at work...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

New Year Promises Challenges to Employer DEI Programs

January 1 marked the effective date for a number of new state laws that attempt to restrict certain employers’ use of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs. State legislatures are restricted under the First...more

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