Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)

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The biggest danger may be misreading the order—and creating new exposure in the process.

On March 26, 2026, President Trump issued an executive order (EO) titled “Addressing DEI Discrimination by Federal Contractors.” Read at the headline level, the order can sound like another broad anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) pronouncement. Read as a procurement directive, however, it is something more concrete and more consequential: a command to federal agencies to begin inserting a mandatory clause into covered contracts and contract-like instruments, including subcontracts and lower-tier subcontracts, within 30 days. That shift, from messaging to mechanics, is the real story.Continue Reading Beyond the Headlines: The Real Contractor Risks in the New DEI Executive Order

Amid a flurry of executive orders starting his second administration, President Donald Trump issued an order entitled “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity” (the “Order”) on January 21, 2025. The Order will have an immediate impact on federal contractors and subcontractors currently subject to the affirmative action obligations concerning women and minorities under now-revoked Executive Order 11246 dated September 24, 1965 (and the subsequent executive orders that refined these obligations). It also signals a significant change in the focus of federal enforcement of equal opportunity laws. The Order does NOT, however, change any of the substantive federal law regarding employment discrimination. Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it remains illegal for employers to make employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Other federal and state statutes prohibit making employment decisions on various other bases, including age, disability, genetic make-up, etc.; none of these substantive laws have been changed. So what has changed?Continue Reading DEI, Discrimination, Affirmative Action and More: How the Recent Executive Order Impacts Private Employers