New Lawsuit Against AI Notetaker Raises Privacy and Compliance Risks for Employers

On August 15, 2025, Brewer v. Otter.ai, a proposed class action lawsuit, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California against Otter.ai, the maker of a widely used AI notetaker and transcription tool. The case alleges that Otter records conversations without the consent of all participants and then uses that data to train its speech recognition models.

The complaint includes claims under the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA), the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), and other privacy statutes. Otter.ai has not yet filed its response, and the allegations remain unproven.

Why this matters for Florida employers

Florida law allows one-party consent for recording conversations, but many other states, including California, require permission from all participants. Florida employers who hold video or phone meetings that include participants in “all-party” states risk violating those states’ laws if they rely on notetaker apps without proper disclosures and permissions.

The lawsuit highlights broader risks with AI transcription tools that go beyond consent, including:

• Sensitive HR or medical conversations being recorded and stored in vendor databases.

• Privileged discussions with legal counsel may be compromised if captured by an AI notetaker.

• Uncertainty about how long vendors retain data and whether it is repurposed to train AI systems.

In addition to legal exposure, the use of these tools without transparency can damage employee and client trust.

Action checklist for Florida businesses

Before adopting AI notetaker tools, Florida employers should:

• Obtain consent from all meeting participants and document that process.

• Ask vendors to confirm how recordings are stored, secured, and whether they are used to train AI.

• Establish written policies on when AI notetakers may be used, especially in HR, legal, or compliance meetings.

• Limit or prohibit use in meetings involving privileged or sensitive content.

• Verify vendor safeguards, such as encryption and access controls, and confirm where data is stored.

• Train employees on disclosure protocols and provide scripts for client meetings.

• Integrate AI notetaker practices into your broader AI governance and compliance framework.

Key takeaway

AI notetakers can improve efficiency, but they create significant compliance, privacy, and reputational risks. Florida employers should not assume that because the state has a one-party consent rule, they are in the clear. Multi-state participants, federal law claims, and privilege concerns all complicate the picture. Employers who want to leverage these tools should adopt strong consent, policy, and governance safeguards now.