Compliance Stuff

  Employers should be thinking about whether to address the following areas of workplace compliance in 2026. These items on the employer to-do list are not all for the month of January, but don’t forget to come back to them throughout the year. Routine Use of Artificial Intelligence.  Does your workplace have a policy on how employees  may use AI in performing their jobs ? D o you have a preferred platform, or do you require certain settings to be used when employees use AI? Does your confidentiality policy address how employees can engage with AI and still protect your data? Or do you pretend that employees don’t use AI at all? Training Managers to Understand Requests for Accommodation Under the Pregnant Worker Fairness Act (PWFA).   This act has been in effect since June 27, 2023, and there have been a number of recent settlements, lawsuits, and charges against employers for failing to accommodate known limitations due to pregnancy. Recent EEOC enforcement exampl...

  Following this year’s Texas legislative session, two bills are set to go into effect in Texas related to the use of nondisclosure and confidentiality agreements for claims of sexual assault and artificial intelligence (AI). Quick Hits Texas Senate Bill 835, effective September 1, 2025, voids any nondisclosure or confidentiality provisions in agreements that prohibit the disclosure of sexual abuse or assault, applying retroactively unless a court order permits nondisclosure. Texas House Bill 149, known as TRAIGA 2.0, effective January 1, 2026, establishes a regulatory framework for AI systems in Texas, including oversight mechanisms, ethical standards, and prohibitions against discriminatory AI practices by employers. Nondisclosure and Confidentiality Provisions for Sexual Assault Claims Senate Bill 835  renders void and unenforceable any nondisclosure or confidentiality provision in an agreement—including settlement agreements—to the extent the provision prohibits the disclo...

The rapid evolution of digital technologies has u shered in a new era for the legal profession—one characterized by both unprecedented promise and intricate new hazards. As practitioners and clients alike become more reliant on artificial intelligence, questions abound regarding the traditional boundaries of confidentiality and privilege that have long served as the bedrock of attorney-client relationships. The accelerated adoption of machine learning (ML), large language models (LLM) and artificial intelligence (AI) has engendered significant transformation within the legal profession, offering new efficiencies but also introducing complex challenges with respect to confidentiality obligations and evidentiary attorney-client privileges. Among the most pressing of these is the effect of AI platforms on the sanctity of attorney-client communications and the attendant risk of inadvertently waiving the attorney-client privilege by clients. We analyze the ramifications of clients’ engageme...

After several months without a functioning quorum, President Trump nominated James Murphy and Scott Mayer to fill vacant seats on the National Labor Relations Board late last week, signaling the potential for a significant course correction of the nation’s labor law landscape. Once confirmed as expected, these nominees could quickly reshape things for employers across the country, especially as many continue to grapple with aggressive union activity, a backlog of Board decisions, and sweeping changes to precedent issued under the prior administration. With the pendulum poised to swing back, employers should start preparing now for what could be a more management-friendly Board. Here is a quick recap and a list of the five most significant cases you should keep your eye on. Trump's Picks and a Path Back to Quorum On July 17, President Trump announced the nominations of two new Board members to fill two of the vacant seats on the NLRB: Scott Mayer, chief labor counsel at a global aer...