WASHINGTON, D.C. – America First Legal (AFL) sued Ally Financial on June 4, 2024, on behalf of a former employee, a U.S. military veteran who served in intelligence and counterterrorism for over 20 years, alleging unlawful race- and sex-based discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Despite AFL’s client’s overwhelming qualifications, the lawsuit alleged, Ally Financial hired him into the lowest tier position available, hiring a demonstrably less qualified person into the management position because that individual met the company’s illegal quotas for diversity in leadership.
On April 3, 2025, AFL announced that the parties in this case had reached a settlement agreement.
For years, Ally Financial dedicated an entire section of its Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) 10-K filings to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), touting demographic statistics as a measure of “progress” — an indication that illegal race- and sex-based quotes may have been at the heart of Ally’s DEI efforts. However, shortly before the settlement was reached, Ally Financial removed all race- and gender-balancing requirements and every mention of DEI policies from its SEC filings.
Below is a comparison of Ally Financial’s corporate disclosure documents before and after AFL’s lawsuit.
In its 2023 filing, which is virtually identical to its 2022 filing, Ally included statements that it “weave[s] DE&I through” all aspects of its “human capital efforts.”
In its 2023 filing, Ally touted its DEI commitment, stating:
- “We are focused on diverse representation and retention in the workforce—including different genders, races, nationalities, sexual orientations…”
- “We aspire to create a diverse workforce,”
- “We take deliberate steps to weave DEI through all our human capital efforts: from pipelining candidates, onboarding, all the way through the employee lifecycle.”
The 2023 filings contain 15 references to DEI, but the 2024 filing completely erased each of them. And “diversity,” which appeared twenty-five times in the bank’s 2023 filings, has now been dropped to only five mentions.
Even more telling, Ally’s 2024 filing warns that, “[c]hanges in government policies following the 2024 U.S. election” present an “increased” risk to the company. Ally goes on to state that the changing political and legal landscape will, “[i]mpact our ability to meet or maintain current or future goals or targets or continue initiatives (including our sustainability targets or diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives), and increase our legal, operational and reputational risks.”
Last year, Ally proudly touted the involvement of its “Chief Diversity Officer” in the company’s “Oversight and Governance.” However, in this year’s 10-K filing, there is not a single mention of this position.
Last year, “embracing diversity and inclusion” was essential to one of Ally’s four core values. This year, the “‘LEAD’ core values” are only referenced in the risk section but are no longer defined.
Finally, in previous years Ally highlighted awards and recognition it received for its unlawful diversity efforts. This year, its entire DEI section has been completely removed.
Thanks in substantial part to AFL’s work, and to President Trump’s Executive Order on ending illegal discrimination and restoring merit-based opportunity, Ally Financial’s actions are part of a growing trend. AFL will relentlessly continue to hold major companies accountable for illegal DEI policies, defend American workers, and fight the woke investment funds, management, and boards that have turned corporate America against customers and shareholders.
Statement from Ryan Giannetti, America First Legal Counsel:
“By stepping back from DEI, Ally is taking a big step towards compliance with vital civil rights laws. We’re happy Ally has dropped racial and gender quotas from its public filings, and we hope it reflects both a genuine commitment by Ally to eliminating discrimination from their own employment practices and a continuing trend against discriminatory DEI in corporate America more broadly,” said Ryan Giannetti.
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Photo Credits: Pefkos
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