Insights

Washington – July 14, 2023: Lawyers of Color has recognized four Crowell & Moring lawyers on its Hot List 2023 and two on its inaugural Wonderful Women list.

Washington – June 1, 2023: Crowell & Moring earned 82 rankings for 68 lawyers across 48 categories, as well as 37 national and statewide practice area rankings, in the Chambers USA 2023 guide. The rankings are driven by independent interviews of clients and lawyers at peer firms.

On June 29, 2023, the Supreme Court held that it is unconstitutional (under the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause, as to public institutions) and a violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (as applicable to private institutions accepting federal financial assistance) for colleges and universities to consider race as a factor in the admissions process. See Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard Coll., No. 20-1199, 2023 WL 4239254 (U.S. June 29, 2023) (“Harvard”), a summary of which can be found here. This decision upended decades of precedent and has caused employers in the private sector to ask how the decision will impact diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DE&I”) initiatives and employment decisions. This article addresses the impact of Harvard, eight months later.

On December 14, 2023, the Department of Labor (“DoL”) issued a final rule implementing Executive Order 14055, “Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts” (the “Rule”). The Rule requires contractors to give service employees from a predecessor contract a bona fide right of first refusal for employment under new Service Contract Act (“SCA”)-covered contracts, contract-like instruments, or subcontracts for the same or similar work. These bona fide offers to service employees—as defined by the SCA—must be made before the contractor makes offers to other workers. The Rule will go into effect on February 12, 2024.

A U.S. federal government shutdown creates a number of direct and indirect consequences that impact U.S. companies, individuals and virtually every aspect of the U.S. economy.  Although the federal government has experienced previous lapses in funding that have led to shutdowns of all or part of the federal government, the current funding impasse and impending shutdown raise a number of unique and unprecedented questions for government workers, government contractors and businesses, and the public at large.

Most companies acknowledge that a robust pipeline of qualified, diverse talent is critical. Recent legal developments in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and artificial intelligence (AI) are creating potential new challenges for employers trying to maintain those pipelines. The result is likely to be an increase in employment lawsuits in 2024 and beyond.

Lorraine Campos,  Toni Michelle Jackson, Trina Fairley Barlow, and Meschach Rhoades will be speaking at the Corporate Counsel Women of Color's 19th Annual Career Strategies Conference.

Please join us for the next edition of Third Thursday – Crowell & Moring’s Labor and Employment Update, a webinar series dedicated to helping our clients stay on top of developing law and emerging compliance issues.

Please join us for the next edition of Third Thursday – Crowell & Moring's Labor and Employment Update, a webinar series dedicated to helping our clients stay on top of developing law, emerging compliance issues, and best practices.

Recent pronouncements from top Department of Justice (“DOJ”) officials, and corresponding updates to the DOJ’s corporate criminal enforcement policies, highlight the Department’s focus on incentivizing voluntary disclosures and the increasingly critical role that a robust compliance program must play in companies today.  Our panel discussion with seasoned Crowell White Collar & Regulatory Enforcement, Investigations, and Labor and Employment attorneys will provide background and context to the updated policies, break down the new developments, and discuss actionable, practical steps that companies can take now to ensure alignment with the updated DOJ guidance—particularly when it comes to calibrating corporate compliance programs to incentivize good behavior and avoid misconduct. 

ESG is a major challenge for insurers. All businesses are being called upon to reevaluate their products and purpose, including their role as employers of diverse, engaged workforces. Plaintiffs’ counsel have already begun to take advantage of changing regulatory and consumer expectations, and ESG-related claims are being pursued in the courts over a wide range of issues. Not only are insurers figuring out how to help others manage these risks, they’re also trying to determine the many ways ESG affects them. 

This week's episode discusses President Trump’s September 22 "Executive Order on Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping," and is hosted by partners Peter Eyre and Trina Fairley Barlow. Crowell & Moring's "Fastest 5 Minutes" is a biweekly podcast that provides a brief summary of significant government contracts legal and regulatory developments that no government contracts lawyer or executive should be without.

In this special edition, partners Tom Gies and Trina Fairley Barlow discuss legal issues government contractors face with regards to the implications of state laws legalizing marijuana use on employer drug testing programs. Crowell & Moring's "Fastest 5 Minutes" is a biweekly podcast that provides a brief summary of significant government contracts legal and regulatory developments that no government contracts lawyer or executive should be without.

In this episode, hosts Jason Crawford and Mana Lombardo speak with Trina Fairley Barlow, a partner in the firm’s Labor and Employment and Government Contracts groups, and Christine Hawes, counsel in the Labor & Employment Group, to discuss the False Claims Act’s retaliation provision and considerations for investigating FCA allegations brought by whistleblowers. "Let's Talk FCA" is Crowell & Moring’s podcast covering the latest developments with the False Claims Act.