The DOJ Issues Its Interpretation Of "Illegal DEI"

The U.S. Department of Justice issued a memorandum to all Federal Agencies providing guidance clarifying the application of Federal discrimination law to DEI programs and offering best practices for program compliance. The memorandum, Guidance for Recipients of Federal Funding Regarding Unlawful Discrimination (the "Guidance"), ostensibly focused on entities receiving federal funding, fleshes out what the Trump Administration meant when it referred to "illegal DEI" in a series of Executive Orders issued earlier this year, and is far more expansive than the guidance the EEOC/DOJ jointly issued back in March (which we discussed here). While the DOJ confirmed that the Guidance is non-binding (e.g. the best practices it offers are not mandatory), employers, whether they do business with the federal government or not, should pay very close attention to its overall message. We summarize the guidance below.