2025 United States Executive Orders, DEI, and Employment: how In-house Lawyers can help the Business

Remind me, what’s an executive order?

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

Executive orders affect the firms of the executive branch and for that reason do not need the approval of Congress. They should be within the president’s constitutional authority and might be challenged in court if deemed unconstitutional.

Executive orders may be rescinded, overturned by future presidents, or challenged in court, and enforcement priorities can alter during any administration.

The new administration’s actions have significant impacts beyond executive orders. For more on mitigating risk, global businesses can take brand-new opportunities by .

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

On Jan. 21, President Trump released “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity,” which reverses numerous prior executive orders and memoranda, including Executive Order 11246 (EO 11246) signed in 1965 by President Lyndon B. Johnson.

EO 11246 required every federal government agreement to include a statement that the professional will not victimize any staff member or applicant for employment based upon race, creed, color, or national origin.

Despite President Trump’s brand-new executive order, the underlying federal anti-discrimination law remains the same for private-sector workers.

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

In December 2024, somalibidders.com President-elect Trump tapped Harmeet K. Dhillon to lead the Justice Department’s civil rights office, indicating his record of “suing corporations who utilize ‘woke’ policies to victimize their workers.”

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

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

Organizations that may be targeted should ask:

– What is my organization’s threat tolerance?

– How will staff members react to the company’s actions?

– How will customers and stakeholders react?

What internal counsel ought to consider:

Assess any federal contracts and grants

– Determine if they contain any terms or conditions connected to DEI that might contravene present laws and regulations

Review your company’s existing DEI policies to understand your danger

– Get ready for increased scrutiny and potential civil compliance investigations

Document, document, file

– Hiring and recruitment procedures

– Performance examinations and promotion choices

– Training products and attendance records

– Any modifications to DEI policies

Implications for federal contractors

To name a few steps, the Jan. 21 Executive Order needs the heads of federal firms to consist of specific terms in every agreement or grant award:

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

– “A term requiring such counterparty or recipient to accredit that it does not operate any programs promoting DEI that violate any relevant Federal anti-discrimination laws.”

Section 3729 of title 31 of the United States Code is a provision of the US False Claims Act, a federal law that enforces civil penalties on those who make false claims to the federal government in order to influence the payment or receipt of cash or residential or commercial property.

The accreditation requirement brings a prospective risk of lawsuits for federal contractors under the False Claims Act. In-house lawyers at federal specialists thus have a particular interest in guaranteeing their company’s policies, procedures, practices, communications and material, are reviewed. Assess if changes are needed to alleviate the threat of litigation.

Executive orders targeting illegal migration

President Trump’s preliminary flurry of executive orders consisted of lots of – such as the Jan. 20 executive order “Protecting the American People Against Invasion” – intended at restricting unlawful migration and deporting prohibited immigrants. The orders call for enforcement actions by federal firms against illegal migration.

In-house lawyers should think about examining their company’s employment eligibility verification process. They may also wish to think about whether the organization is prepared for reacting to an I-9 audit or a worksite enforcement action (or raid) by immigration enforcement agencies.

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

In-house counsel have an important function to play in establishing and ensuring consistent application of the Form I-9 and E-Verify policies the federal government utilizes to execute and enforce migration law, shares John W. Mazzeo, AGC, director of I-9 and E-Verify compliance for Vertical Screen, Inc., in a 2024 ACC Docket post.

Check out useful checklists of considerations pertinent for in-house attorneys on the subject of I-9 audits and worksite enforcement actions.

If a company does not comply with a civil administrative warrant provided by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), there is a risk that the firm might commence an I-9 audit if they felt an employer was obstructing their need to arrest a non-citizen worker, or in some cases get a criminal warrant from a judge if actions support it.

Steps in-house counsel should think about:

– Determine the number of workers might potentially be impacted

– Review your organization’s work eligibility verification procedure

– Ensure your company’s procedure is recorded and defensible

– Implement and enforce clear policies

– Monitor legal advancements, including litigation and enforcement assistance

Mitigate threat, remain nimble, and take brand-new chances

The recent executive orders will substantially impact international organizations. Legal departments and internal counsel will need to help their companies understand and adapt to changes, ensuring compliance or litigating when appropriate.

Many of the brand-new administration’s decisions will play out over the coming months, consisting of brand-new executive orders and legal challenges. The Docket will continue to keep track of advancements. Global internal attorneys should prepare for referall.us quick developments related to:

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 postponed by a month as the administration participates in negotiations. Meanwhile, China has begun its own retaliatory procedures on US products. He had previously announced his intent to enforce 25-percent intensifying tariffs on Colombia (an action that was ultimately not taken).

Technology and intellectual residential or commercial property. Among the president’s very first actions was to rescind the previous administration’s AI executive order. The new administration likewise extended a grace duration for TikTok’s approaching ban, sending out waves throughout the innovation sector, both in the United States and abroad.

Energy, climate, and health. The president likewise withdrew the United States from the Paris Climate Agreement and the World Health Organization, putting an early emphasis on American energy independence and far from the previous administration’s international sustainability efforts.

Steps in-house counsel need to think about:

– Assess the impact of prospective tariff increases on supply chain and company continuity.

– Assess the organization’s reliance on social networks platforms, such as for marketing purposes, and the possible needs to backup social media information and properties in case their preferred platform stops to be offered.

– Consider how advancements in the new administration’s technique to ecological, sustainability and governance concerns might affect the company’s ESG method.

Disclaimer: The info in any resource in this website should not be construed as legal suggestions or as a legal viewpoint on specific facts, and ought to not be considered representing the views of its authors, its sponsors, and/or ACC. These resources are not intended as a conclusive statement on the subject resolved. Rather, they are meant to work as a tool providing practical assistance and recommendations for the busy in-house practitioner and other readers.