#WorkforceWednesday: The Ripple Effect of the Supreme Court’s SFFA Ruling for Diversity in the Workplace - Employment Law This Week®
Business Better Podcast Episode: Is DEI at Risk? Considerations on the US Supreme Court Ruling Against Affirmative Action Programs
Even when well-intentioned, DEI programs are not exempt from federal civil rights laws. That is the core message of Attorney General Pam Bondi’s memo clarifying the Department of Justice’s interpretation of federal...more
Earlier this year, we addressed a growing sense of confusion and unease among federal contractors relating to shifting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) standards. Specifically, awardees had to take stock of the...more
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
On May 19, 2025, the Department of Justice announced the establishment of a Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, created to enforce the False Claims Act (FCA) “against those who defraud the United States by taking its money while...more
On March 5, Do No Harm filed a lawsuit against the American Chemical Society (ACS), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, challenging a scholarship program for undergraduate students from historically underrepresented groups in...more
An ATIXA Testimonial by Alexis Piñero-Benson, University of New Hampshire Following the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack in Israel and the ongoing geopolitical conflict, many colleges and universities witnessed a surge of...more
On March 7, 2025, the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that it would begin investigating four medical schools and hospitals pursuant to President Donald Trump’s...more
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) dispatched letters to 60 colleges and universities warning them of potential enforcement actions if they do not fulfill their obligations under Title VI of the...more
On March 1, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) released a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document in connection with the February 14 Dear Colleague Letter (DCL). This document aims to clarify how...more
On January 14, 2025, the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced a resolution agreement with the University of Washington following a Title VI complaint of alleged discrimination and harassment based...more
In the flurry of executive orders issued shortly after being sworn for a second term, President Donald Trump issued two executive orders and one presidential action dismantling all diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)...more
Employer's DEI mandate scores a win. A white guy refused to take his employer's mandatory "unconscious bias" training, and he was fired. He sued the employer for retaliation, his lawsuit was dismissed, and this week an...more
The Natural Resources Defense Council and Los Jardines Institute (collectively, “NRDC”) submitted a May 30th document to EPA styled: Complaint under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Environmental Protection...more
In a case that has been closely watched by the charitable sector, on June 3, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit issued a decision blocking a race-based grant program that provided funds and mentorship to...more
A group of 23 Republican AGs filed a petition for rulemaking to the EPA demanding that it amend its regulations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act that prohibit recipients of EPA funds from engaging in certain...more
The Biden Administration has made concentrated efforts to address the rise in reports of antisemitic, Islamophobic, and other hate-based or bias-based incidents in schools and on college campuses since the beginning of the...more
At the end of January, a federal judge issued a ruling in a high-profile environmental justice case, Louisiana v. EPA, brought by Louisiana against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Justice...more
On May 4, 2023, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a first-of-its-kind Title VI environmental justice interim resolution agreement with the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH). The resolution follows an...more
The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has published a factsheet entitled “Diversity and Inclusion Activities Under Title VI,” clarifying that diversity, equity, and inclusion training “in most factual...more
The concept of “environmental justice” (“EJ”) is not new—the federal government has been working to define and address environmental justice and related human health and environmental effects since the Clinton administration....more
On September 15, 2016, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) issued guidance on how the nondiscrimination provisions in the Fair Housing Act (FHA) apply to persons who consider an individual’s “Limited...more
Last week, HUD issued new guidance confirming that persons with limited English proficiency (LEP) are protected under the Fair Housing Act (FHA). LEP includes a limited ability to read, write, speak, or understand English. ...more