As the rapid growth of AI in the workplace continues, many employees and employers are utilizing AI notetaking tools and meeting recording and transcribing software. Although these are great tools, there are some legal concerns and steps employers should take to remain compliant with their state and federal recording laws.

The federal law states that only a one-party consent is required to record a meeting, call, or conversation. This means that at least one participant must consent to recording a meeting or conversation. For example, if two coworkers are having a meeting, one of them can choose to record the meeting without notifying or gaining explicit consent from the other. However, the state laws regarding consent to record can differ and have additional requirements. Some states require a two-party or all-party consent meaning that all parties participating in the meeting or call must be notified and give consent before the beginning of the recording. Typically, consent can be either passive or active. Passive consent could be an announcement, audio or visual, that is given at the start of the meeting or call notifying attendees that it will be recorded. Attendees assume passive consent if they continue with the meeting or call without objection. If they do not want to be recorded, the recorder can choose not to record, or the objector can choose not to participate. Active consent could be asking attendees to sign a consent form before the recorded event or it could be an audio or visual cue at the start of the meeting where attendees must either click that they give consent or audibly voice their consent before proceeding.

Michigan law currently identifies as a one-party consent state but has some protections. Third parties are not allowed to record without consent as this is a violation of the eavesdropping clause. For example, companies cannot record employees' meetings or calls if neither the employees nor other attendees are aware they are being recorded or have given consent. It should be noted that the eavesdropping clause does not apply in public places. Something else employers must consider is if one of the parties on the meeting or call is located in a two-party consent state at the time of the recording, then consent needs to be obtained from both or all of the parties in the conversation. So, although the one-party consent may be the only law applicable for your organization in your state, it is still recommended to gain at least passive consent from all participants in the event you have remote attendees who may or may not be out of state.

Employers can put a clause in their employee handbook outlining a requirement that employees have to obtain consent from one or more parties before recording any meeting or call. This allows an employer to have ground to stand on if an employee engages in an illegal recording. This is a recommended step as some employees may try to record meetings or calls to catch someone in a lie. Illegally recorded meetings and calls are not admissible in court as evidence and even legally recorded ones can be inadmissible depending on what you are trying to prove. This is something to keep in mind in the case of a lawsuit or violation. The consequences in Michigan for violating recording laws can be up to $2,000 in fines and up to two years in prison. If you violate federal law, you could face up to $2,500 in fines and five years in prison. This could be in addition to attorney fees and damages filed in civil court.

In addition to ensuring you obtain the required consent, there are a few other things to consider when creating your recording policy framework. If you are making an ADA accommodation to provide a recording or notetaking device, it is best practice to notify employees that they may be recorded in meetings, training, calls, etc. You cannot disclose the reason for the accommodation, but you can disclose how it affects them. This means you can let the affected employees know they will be recorded, and it is advised that you get their consent before initiating the accommodation. It should be noted that any party who participates in the meeting or call and consents to being recorded has the right to access the recordings. You must also gain consent from the recorded parties before sending the recording of the call or meeting to others who did not participate. It is best practice to send out the recording to all participants after the conclusion of the event regardless of whether they have requested it or not. Participants also have the right to request the erasure of a recorded call or meeting if they have legitimate concerns that privacy information was shared or discussed on the recording.

Although for some this may be obvious, the following are insights into when to record and when not to record. It is generally okay to record meetings or calls for training purposes when you want to review your own contributions and improve yourself or when a new employee is training in customer service or sales calls. It is also beneficial to record in order to keep people in the loop if they have missed meetings, to provide notes and to-do’s, and to keep track of long discussions and brainstorming sessions. We also see recording happening a lot with informational webinars; however, you are only allowed to record these if you are the one hosting the webinar unless you have obtained special permission. In this case, the webinar host will engage in passive consent with attendees via a notification in the meeting platform. You should not record any meetings or calls where there is private sensitive information being shared, for example, any health or banking information. It is also not a good idea to record one-on-one meetings or disciplinary discussions. Most importantly, you cannot record any meeting or call where one or more participants do not consent to being recorded.

Sources:

Ganesh, Y. (n.d.). Call recording laws: one party (two party) consent states - A look at the laws in detail | Avoma Blog. Www.avoma.com. https://www.avoma.com/blog/call-recording-laws

Koelzer, J. D. (2022). Setting the Record Straight on Recording Conversations: Is Michigan a “One-Party Consent” State? Natlawreview.com; National Law Review. https://natlawreview.com/article/setting-record-straight-recording-conversations-michigan-one-party-consent-state

Michigan Audio Recording Laws: Consent and Legal Guidelines. (2025, January 18). LegalClarity. https://legalclarity.org/michigan-audio-recording-laws-consent-and-legal-guidelines/#google_vignette

United States Recording Laws. (n.d.). Recording Law. https://recordinglaw.com/united-states-recording-laws/

Wilson, J. (2024, December 13). Romano Law-New York. Romano Law. https://www.romanolaw.com/can-i-record-a-conversation-in-michigan/