#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
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
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
If nothing else, the early days of the Trump administration 2.0 have been a whirlwind of legal activity. Diversity, equity and inclusion efforts have of course been at the forefront and on February 14, 2025 the federal...more
On February 14, 2025, the United States Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued guidance clarifying how the Department will interpret federal laws that prohibit schools and other entities receiving...more
On February 14, the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (DOE) issued a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL), which calls for educational institutions to immediately cease race-conscious practices in student...more
On February 14, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) issued a new "Dear Colleague" letter to "clarify and reaffirm the nondiscrimination obligations of schools and other entities that receive federal financial assistance...more
On February 14, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education released a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) concerning discrimination based on race, color, and national origin in K-12 and higher education. The DCL articulates the...more
On February 14, 2025, the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a Dear Colleague Letter about legal obligations for educational institutions under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the...more
In a tersely worded “Dear Colleague” letter dated February 14, 2025 (pdf), the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) signaled its intent to combat “pervasive and repugnant race-based preferences and...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
As 2023 ends, despite the visions of sugar plums dancing in your head, it is a good time to take stock of government initiatives affecting your Affirmative Action practice, the better to get ready for 2024. Many things...more
The U.S. Supreme Court struck down race-based affirmative action in higher education in June 2023, effectively foreclosing the consideration of race in and of itself in that context. Although the Court’s decision was...more
Seeing the barrage of lawsuits following the United States Supreme Court’s recent decision regarding the use of race in admissions in higher education has left many in K-12 independent and private schools scratching their...more
The U.S. Supreme Court held the use of race in university and college admissions is unconstitutional in its Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. decisions on June 29, 2023. The Court’s ruling directly addresses only the...more
On June 29, 2023, the United States Supreme Court overturned a decades-old precedent that held race-based affirmative action policies in higher education institutions were constitutional. However, in Students for Fair...more
Colleges and universities can still take steps to foster diverse and inclusive campuses — even after the Supreme Court’s decision severely limiting race-conscious admissions in education, according to the latest guidance from...more
As expected, the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the Students for Fair Admissions Inc.’s lawsuit against Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, which challenged the constitutionality of the universities’ race...more
On July 24, 2023, less than a month after the Supreme Court's landmark decision striking down affirmative action practices in college admissions, the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has launched an...more
In Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College, et al., the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the admissions practices used by Harvard University and the University of North Carolina, which...more
The Supreme Court issued a major decision at the end of June when it outlawed affirmative action for colleges in Students for Fair Admissions v. President & Fellows of Harvard College (“SFFA”). The Court based its decision...more
The Supreme Court’s decision to strike down affirmative action will spur more challenges to educational institutions’ policies beyond admissions. Our Education Team discusses race conscious admissions prior to the Court’s...more
On June 29, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court decided that the use of race by Harvard University and the University of North Carolina in their student admissions programs violates the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment...more
On June 29, 2023, in a 6-3 decision along ideological lines, the Supreme Court drastically altered college admissions by ruling that affirmative action admissions practices violated the Equal Protection Clause of the...more
On June 29, 2023, in a set of consolidated cases (Students for Fair Admissions v. Presidents & Fellows of Harvard and Students for Fair Admissions v. University of North Carolina et al.), the Supreme Court overturned...more