2025 uS Executive Orders, DEI, and Employment: how In-house Lawyers can Assist the Business

Remind me, what’s an executive order?

Executive orders are regulations bought by the president of the United States that direct government agencies and officials to take specific actions. While they are not laws, they have the force of law and impact how existing laws are carried out or implemented.

Executive orders affect the companies of the executive branch and therefore do not require the approval of Congress. They need to be within the president’s constitutional authority and may be challenged in court if deemed unconstitutional.

Executive orders might be rescinded, reversed by future presidents, or challenged in court, and enforcement concerns can alter during any administration.

The brand-new administration’s actions have far-reaching effects beyond executive orders. For more on mitigating risk, worldwide companies can seize brand-new opportunities by remaining nimble.

Implications of the executive orders for DEI initiatives and job work in private-sector organizations

On Jan. 21, President Trump issued “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” which reverses various previous executive orders and memoranda, consisting of Executive Order 11246 (EO 11246) checked in 1965 by President Lyndon B. Johnson.

EO 11246 needed every government agreement to consist of a statement that the professional will not victimize any employee or applicant for employment based upon race, creed, color, or national origin.

Despite President Trump’s new executive order, the underlying federal anti-discrimination law remains unchanged for private-sector staff members.

However, the executive order signals that there may be changing enforcement priorities in the brand-new administration. The order directs all federal agencies to “combat illegal private-sector DEI preferences, mandates, policies, programs, and activities.”

In December 2024, President-elect Trump tapped Harmeet K. Dhillon to lead the Justice Department’s civil rights office, indicating his record of “taking legal action against corporations who use ‘woke’ policies to discriminate versus their workers.”

In addition to revoking EO 11246, the Jan. 21 executive order instructs each company of the federal government to identify “up to 9 potential civic compliance examinations” of economic sector entities within 120 days of the order – by May 21, 2025.

The economic sector entities based on these examinations include publicly traded corporations, big nonprofits – consisting of bar associations – big structures, and universities whose endowments surpass US$ 1 billion.

Organizations that may be targeted should ask:

– What is my organization’s danger ?

– How will workers react to the company’s actions?

– How will customers and stakeholders respond?

What internal counsel ought to think of:

Assess any federal agreements and grants

– Determine if they contain any terms or conditions connected to DEI that might conflict with current laws and regulations

Review your company’s existing DEI policies to comprehend your threat

– Prepare for increased scrutiny and possible civil compliance investigations

Document, document, document

– Hiring and recruitment procedures

– Performance examinations and promotion choices

– Training products and attendance records

– Any modifications to DEI policies

Implications for federal contractors

Among other steps, the Jan. 21 Executive Order needs the heads of federal agencies to include specific terms in every contract or grant award:

– “A term needing the legal counterparty or grant recipient to agree that its compliance in all respects with all suitable Federal anti-discrimination laws is material to the federal government’s payment decisions for purposes of area 3729( b)( 4) of title 31, United States Code”; and

– “A term requiring such counterparty or recipient to license that it does not run any programs promoting DEI that break any appropriate Federal anti-discrimination laws.”

Section 3729 of title 31 of the United States Code is an arrangement of the US False Claims Act, a federal law that enforces civil charges on those who make incorrect claims to the government in order to affect the payment or receipt of money or residential or commercial property.

The certification requirement carries a possible danger of lawsuits for federal professionals under the False Claims Act. In-house lawyers at federal contractors thus have a specific interest in guaranteeing their company’s policies, treatments, practices, interactions and content, are examined. Assess if adjustments are needed to reduce the danger of lawsuits.

Executive orders targeting prohibited migration

President Trump’s preliminary flurry of executive orders consisted of numerous – such as the Jan. 20 executive order “Protecting the American People Against Invasion” – aimed at restricting unlawful immigration and deporting illegal immigrants. The orders require enforcement actions by federal firms against unlawful immigration.

In-house lawyers need to consider reviewing their company’s employment eligibility confirmation process. They might likewise wish to think about whether the organization is prepared for responding to an I-9 audit or a worksite enforcement action (or raid) by immigration enforcement firms.

Sectors that may be especially affected include agriculture, hospitality, job and other industries such as building. From 2020-2022, 42 percent of crop farmworkers held no work authorization, according to the US Department of Agriculture. The American Immigration Council approximates that more than one million undocumented immigrants work in hospitality, representing 7.1 percent of the labor force.

In-house counsel have an essential role to play in establishing and guaranteeing constant application of the Form I-9 and job E-Verify policies the federal government uses to implement and implement immigration law, shares John W. Mazzeo, AGC, director job of I-9 and E-Verify compliance for Vertical Screen, Inc., in a 2024 ACC Docket post.

Check out informative checklists of factors to consider relevant for in-house legal representatives on the subject of I-9 audits and worksite enforcement actions.

If a company does not comply with a civil administrative warrant presented by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), there is a risk that the firm could commence an I-9 audit if they felt a company was blocking their need to detain a non-citizen worker, or job sometimes obtain a criminal warrant from a judge if actions support it.

Steps in-house counsel ought to consider:

– Determine the number of employees could potentially be impacted

– Review your organization’s employment eligibility verification process

– Ensure your company’s procedure is recorded and defensible

– Implement and implement clear policies

– Monitor legal developments, including lawsuits and enforcement assistance

Mitigate threat, stay active, and take new chances

The current executive orders will considerably impact worldwide services. Legal departments and internal counsel will need to help their companies understand and adjust to changes, making sure compliance or litigating when proper.

Much of the brand-new administration’s choices will play out over the coming months, including brand-new executive orders and legal challenges. The Docket will continue to monitor advancements. Global in-house lawyers should get ready for fast developments associated with:

Trade and tariffs. On Feb. 1, President Trump ordered the imposition of a 25-percent tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico, and 10-percent additional tariffs on imports from China. The former 2 were both delayed by a month as the administration takes part in negotiations. Meanwhile, China has begun its own retaliatory procedures on US goods. He had actually formerly announced his intent to enforce 25-percent escalating tariffs on Colombia (an action that was eventually not taken).

Technology and intellectual home. One of the president’s very first actions was to rescind the previous administration’s AI executive order. The brand-new administration also extended a grace duration for TikTok’s approaching restriction, sending out waves throughout the innovation sector, both in the United States and abroad.

Energy, environment, and health. The president also withdrew the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement and the World Health Organization, putting an early emphasis on American energy self-reliance and job away from the previous administration’s worldwide sustainability efforts.

Steps in-house counsel need to consider:

– Assess the effect of possible tariff increases on supply chain and organization connection.

– Assess the organization’s dependency on social networks platforms, such as for marketing purposes, and the prospective needs to backup social media information and possessions in case their preferred platform ceases to be available.

– Consider how advancements in the new administration’s technique to ecological, sustainability and governance issues might impact the organization’s ESG strategy.

Disclaimer: The information in any resource in this site must not be construed as legal recommendations or as a legal opinion on specific facts, and must not be thought about representing the views of its authors, its sponsors, job and/or ACC. These resources are not intended as a definitive declaration on the subject dealt with. Rather, they are meant to act as a tool providing practical guidance and recommendations for the busy internal practitioner and other readers.