Recent action by the U.S. Department of Justice has created uncertainty regarding the status of disparate impact discrimination cases.
On Dec. 10, 2025, the DOJ issued a final rule entitled “Rescinding Portions of Department of Justice Title VI Regulations to Conform More Closely with the Statutory Text and to Implement Executive Order 14281.”
The referenced executive order directs federal agencies to “deprioritize enforcement of all statutes and regulations to the extent they include disparate impact liability.” The net effect is that the DOJ has revised its regulations to remove liability for disparate impact discrimination under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
LINKS
Read "Are Disparate Impact Discrimination Claims Still Viable?" by Terence P. McCourt, published in Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly and Rhode Island Lawyers Weekly. (subscription)
To download a PDF, click the media link below.