#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
Following President Donald Trump’s issuance in January 2025 of the “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity” executive order, which sought to curb “illegal” diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI)...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
As the academic year is now wrapping up, we hope that the final weeks of school have been relatively stress free, and that our clients are now looking forward to some slower summer days. Here at Franczek, we have continued to...more
On May 19, 2025, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced its plan to use the False Claims Act to investigate and pursue claims of civil rights violations against federal fund recipients. The plan, entitled the Civil...more
According to a memorandum issued on May 19, 2025, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) will use the False Claims Act as a tool to enforce federal civil rights laws. The new policy memo has serious potential implications for...more
On May 19, 2025, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a memorandum (the “Memorandum”) establishing the Department of Justice’s “Civil Rights Fraud Initiative” (the “Initiative”). The program “will utilize the False...more
On April 23, President Trump issued an executive order, "Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy" (EO), intending to abolish a longstanding liability theory for workplace discrimination claims. Emphasizing the need...more
On April 23, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order titled “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy” (order). The order declares disparate impact theory to be “wholly inconsistent with the...more
On April 23, 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed Executive Order 14281, Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy (the “EO”), which aims to eliminate disparate impact as a theory of liability for unlawful...more
On April 23, 2025, the White House issued an executive order directing the Secretary of Education to investigate and hold accountable accreditors of institutions of higher education that engage in unlawful discriminatory...more
On April 23, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order titled “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy” (the Order). Through this Executive Order, and accompanying Fact Sheet, the Trump Administration...more
As public school districts continue to navigate the relationship between local policies and federal government policy initiatives, they have a new topic to consider arising out of an April 24, 2025, Executive...more
President Donald Trump on April 23, 2025, issued an executive order (EO) titled "Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy," mandating the cessation of federal enforcement of the "disparate impact" theory of...more
On Wednesday, April 23, 2025, President Trump issued several Executive Orders targeting various elements of his policy agenda. Below, we discuss orders that aim to eliminate the use of disparate-impact liability under Title...more
On April 23, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order instructing that federal agencies cease using the disparate impact theory of liability under federal civil rights laws, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act...more
Recent Executive Orders issued by President Trump repeatedly refer to “illegal” diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) preferences and activities. ...more
On April 3, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) issued a press release announcing the ED sent certification letters to state commissions that oversee K-12 State Education Agencies (SEAs), charging SEAs with the...more
Real World Impact: In light of recent government actions directed at ensuring educational institutions protect their faculty and staff, as well as students, from antisemitism, such employers should ensure they are familiar...more
It was another big week for the Department of Education, with President Trump signing an Executive Order on Thursday instructing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take actions to “close” the Department. President Trump’s...more
On March 14, 2025, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay of the U.S. District Court’s preliminary injunction, which will allow the Trump administration to continue enforcing the Executive Orders (EOs) related to...more
On March 7, 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) had initiated four investigations into unnamed medical schools and hospitals over allegations that the...more
On March 5, 2025, the National Education Association (NEA) and its New Hampshire affiliate (NEA-NH) sued the U.S. Department of Education, challenging a recently issued “Dear Colleague Letter” (DCL) that informed schools that...more
Despite the issuance of a sweeping national federal court injunction against President Donald Trump’s January 20, 2025 and January 21, 2025 Executive Orders that seek to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (“DEI”)...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