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Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 requires employers to accommodate the religious practices of their employees unless doing so would impose an “undue hardship on the conduct of the employer’s business.” Based on one sentence from a 1977 U.S. Supreme Court opinion, federal courts previously interpreted “undue hardship” to mean any effort or cost that is more than “de minimis,” a relatively employer-friendly standard. That standard changed in 2023, however, with Groff v. DeJoy, where Justice Alito delivered the court’s unanimous opinion and clarified “what Title VII requires” when evaluating a religious accommodation request.

The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) is supplementing its general compliance program guidance with Industry Segment-Specific Compliance Program Guidance (ICPG) as a resource to help identify risk areas in particular industry segments. This year OIG issued its Medicare Advantage ICPG to help Medicare Advantage Organizations (“MAOs”) prevent and monitor fraud, waste, and abuse risks (https://oig.hhs.gov/compliance/ma-icpg/). The OIG’s guidance focuses on risk mitigation for network adequacy and provider directory accuracy, utilization management tools (including prior authorization), improper financial incentives, deceptive marketing practices, risk adjustment, quality of care, oversight of third parties, and compliance programs within vertical organizations and other ownership structures.

As companies continue to adopt Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools to streamline various business processes, many of these tools are being applied to workforce management tasks. While the power of these tools is undeniable, concerns are emerging that the level of control they allow companies to have over independent contractors (ICs) could lead a court or government agency to determine that the contractors are actually employees, entitling them to minimum wages, overtime, and potentially other benefits. It is therefore critical for employers (and purported employers) to review closely, among other requirements, the level of control, via AI or otherwise, that they exert over workers they classify as ICs.

For the first time in almost 30 years, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”), has updated its Form I-9 Inspection Fact Sheet. These changes were issued without any notice in the Federal Register and there was no proposed rulemaking. The revisions replace many provisions of the 1997 Virtue Memorandum, which governed compliance until now, and reclassified many common or technical errors as substantive violations. As a result, employers now face an increased risk of violations and penalties.

The Civil Rights Fraud Initiative is highly relevant for employers because it expands the risk landscape for companies that receive federal funds, hold government contracts, or certify compliance with federal civil rights laws. The initiative signals that the government intends to use the False Claims Act — traditionally associated with financial fraud — as a tool to police allegedly discriminatory employment and DEI-related practices.

Bodman’s John David Gardiner authored an article in The Complete Compliance and Ethics Manual 2026, a publication of the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE). The article shares tips and tricks for maintaining a proper due diligence process when hiring or…

In collaboration with the Center for Health and Research Transformation and Camden Coalition, Bodman’s Jennifer Black co-authored a brief for the Partnership to Align Social Care’s Community Care Hub Contracting Workgroup. The brief focuses on helping your team analyze and…

Bodman’s Grant Semonin authored an article in the Summer 2025 edition of The Litigation Journal, a State Bar of Michigan publication. The article discusses the Michigan Supreme Court case, Saugatuck Dunes Coastal Alliance v Saugatuck Twp, and the changes to the…

On July 31, the final day of the Michigan Supreme Court’s term, the court ruled that contracts that require employees to waive the normal statute of limitations for claims arising from their employment in favor of a shorter time frame are…

Bodman’s Michelle Czapski and Sinéad Redmond authored an article in the fourth edition of the Introduce Evidence with Confidence, an ICLE publication. With this book, readers will: Quickly find the relevant rules and controlling caselaw on dozens of rules of…

Bodman’s John David Gardiner authored an article in The Complete Compliance and Ethics Manual 2026, a publication of the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE). The article shares tips and tricks for maintaining a proper due diligence process when hiring or…

In collaboration with the Center for Health and Research Transformation and Camden Coalition, Bodman’s Jennifer Black co-authored a brief for the Partnership to Align Social Care’s Community Care Hub Contracting Workgroup. The brief focuses on helping your team analyze and…

Bodman’s Grant Semonin authored an article in the Summer 2025 edition of The Litigation Journal, a State Bar of Michigan publication. The article discusses the Michigan Supreme Court case, Saugatuck Dunes Coastal Alliance v Saugatuck Twp, and the changes to the…

On July 31, the final day of the Michigan Supreme Court’s term, the court ruled that contracts that require employees to waive the normal statute of limitations for claims arising from their employment in favor of a shorter time frame are…

Bodman’s Michelle Czapski and Sinéad Redmond authored an article in the fourth edition of the Introduce Evidence with Confidence, an ICLE publication. With this book, readers will: Quickly find the relevant rules and controlling caselaw on dozens of rules of…