In the Media
Joe Motto Discusses DEI Policy Disclosures with Bloomberg Law
In the Media
May 7, 2025
Winston & Strawn partner Joe Motto was quoted in a Bloomberg Law article discussing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policy disclosures following President Trump’s executive orders targeting the initiatives in the private sector and the lawsuit against Target Corp. alleging that the company failed to adequately disclose to investors the risk that its 2023 Pride-themed marketing campaign could turn off customers. DEI strategies can refer broadly to campaigns for social awareness, such as selling merchandise or promoting statements in support of underrepresented communities, or narrowly to internal company hiring policies.
Companies should definitely be looking at the Target case, said Joe. But there are similar instances where courts have found DEI statements aren’t actionable, he said.
“We think there’s going to be a lot of defenses there for sure, if they’re appropriately identified as forward-looking, companies should be absolutely identifying them as such. We certainly wouldn’t want to scaremonger based on the Target case,” he said.
There are multiple ways companies could face securities litigation if they choose to disclose DEI risks, such as after revelations from the filing of employee discrimination suits or those from states attorneys general, Joe added.
Shareholder derivative actions, which are filed on a company’s behalf against its corporate leaders, “could be even the more frequent route,” he said. “I think it’ll just depend on if you see a major movement in the stock, you’re going to see the direct action. If you don’t, you see other negative consequences, you’ll see the derivative actions.”