The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently became the first appellate court to rule on the lawfulness of a liability waiver in a Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) disclosure. It found that an employer acted willfully in violation of the FCRA when it included a liability waiver in its FCRA disclosure. Similar class actions have been on the rise in recent years. In the case of Syed v. M-I, the Ninth Circuit reversed previous rulings of the trial court, finding that the employer’s violation was “willful.” Employers should arrange for a thorough review of their background consent forms to ensure they are in compliance with FCRA laws.
