On July 17, 2018, the DOL rescinded its 2016 "persuader
rule" — a controversial reinterpretation of the
Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959
(LMRDA) that would have required employers and their
consultants (including lawyers) to report their relationships and
the fees paid related to persuading employees "to exercise or
not to exercise... the right to organize and bargain
collectively... ."
The 2016 rule effectively eviscerated the LMRDA's exemption
for reporting advice, including legal advice, if the DOL concluded
that an object of the advice — directly or indirectly —
was persuading employees about whether or not to form or join a
union. Activities that would have triggered reporting
included indirect consultant activity undertaken with a potential
object to persuade employees, such as planning, directing, or
coordinating activities undertaken by supervisors; providing
material or communications for dissemination to employees;
conducting positive
