A California federal judge issued a written tentative ruling indicating that she would likely approve AutoZone, Inc.’s agreement to pay $5.7 million to settle claims that the company illegally ran credit checks on 200,000 prospective employees. In September 2014, two…
Posts by Category: Background Check Compliance
U.S. Census Bureau Settles Hiring Lawsuit Over Criminal Histories
The U.S. Census Bureau has reached a $15 million settlement of a lawsuit claiming it discriminated against black and Hispanic job applicants with criminal histories during the 2010 census by making it too hard to document their readiness for work. It requires the…
SEPTA Background Checks Violate Federal and State Laws
A new federal lawsuit alleges Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) willfully violates federal and state laws when conducting criminal background checks of prospective employees, says Outten& Golden LLP and a coalition of legal advocates….
Big Data, Background Checks, and Discrimination
The White House released a report to herald its focus on discrimination in “big data” assisted personnel screening algorithms. The report explained that screening algorithms may use factors that are correlated with protected categories to automate a discriminatory…
Uber Settles Lawsuit With San Francisco and Los Angeles Over Driver Background Checks
Uber agreed to pay up to $25 million to settle a 2014 lawsuit filed by city officials in San Francisco and Los Angeles who argued that the ride service gave customers a “false sense of security” by touting its background checks as the toughest in the industry. The…
Chattanooga Police Backlogged On 23,000 Expunged Records
While Chattanooga leaders are working to make it easier to hire people with criminal backgrounds, the Chattanooga Police Department is years behind on expunging its own records, with 23,000 files outstanding. “It could create real problems,” longtime…
Wells Fargo, Bank of America Face Class Action Lawsuit Over Background Checks
Plaintiff Steve-Ann Muir alleges Wells Fargo violated FCRA by rescinding a job offer for a customer service position based on a false statement that was included in a background report furnished by First Advantage Background Services Corp. According to the FCRA class…
Dave & Buster’s Faces Class Action Lawsuit Over Background Checks
Dave & Buster’s has been hit with a proposed class action lawsuit that accuses the restaurant and arcade chain of deliberately disregarding the FCRA when it comes to hiring employees. Lead plaintiff Joseph Alvarez says he applied for a line cook position and…
Colleges That Ask Applicants About Brushes With the Law Draw Scrutiny
The online admissions application for Auburn University appears simple, until you get to this question: “Have you ever been charged with or convicted of or pled guilty or nolo contendere to a crime other than a minor traffic offense, or are there any criminal…
NYU Moves to Remove Criminal Background Check Questions on College Application Forms
New York University is taking steps to remove the criminal background check question on their college application forms. By doing this, prospective students would no longer have to divulge if they’ve run afoul of the law. Could this be the new frontier of Ban…



