Compliance hotline · Serving the Greater Austin Metro
Hear about problems first, while they are still small.
A compliance hotline and reporting system, set up on request and managed by your employment lawyer. Once your hotline is live, employees can report concerns by phone at any hour or by email, anonymously by phone if they choose, and an attorney reviews every report. Available for setup for employer clients, large and small.
On this page
How it works
Each hotline is set up for the client on request: the number, the company code or dedicated line, the posters and handbook language, the routing rules, and the engagement letter. Once it is live:
- Employees call or email. An AI assistant takes phone reports at any hour, discloses that it is an AI, and explains that Crawford Law represents the company, not the caller.
- Named or anonymous. Anonymous callers are not asked for identifying information, and their phone number is not stored with the report. Every caller gets a report number and PIN to follow up.
- A structured report. What happened, when, where, who was involved, whether a leader is involved, and whether anyone is in danger, read back for the caller to confirm. Callers in immediate danger are told to call 911.
- Attorney review. An attorney reviews every report on the response standard in the engagement letter, and urgent reports are flagged immediately.
- Escalation around the problem. Reports that involve the owner, a senior leader, or your usual contact go to alternate contacts you designate in advance.
- Advice and action. The firm advises on next steps, including investigations, interim measures, and retaliation safeguards.
- Regular summaries for leadership, de-identified, with small numbers combined so they do not point to anyone.
Shared or dedicated
- Shared line. One firm-wide hotline number for small employers. Employees identify their employer with a short company code from the workplace poster, and the line never reveals which companies use it.
- Dedicated line. A phone number used only by your company, printed on your own posters and handbook.
More than a phone line
A hotline works only inside a system people trust. The firm can also assess your current compliance and reporting practices, write or update your code of conduct, non-retaliation, and reporting policies, provide the poster and handbook language, train managers on what to do, and not do, after a report, and conduct or oversee workplace investigations. Read: what excellent compliance systems and hotlines look like.
What it is not
- It does not make a company “compliant” with any law, and it does not guarantee privilege.
- The firm represents the company, not the people who call, and will not represent a client’s employees against that client.
- It does not replace any channel a regulator requires, and it never limits anyone’s right to contact a government agency.
- A lawyer is not on the line around the clock. The AI takes the initial report, and an attorney reviews every report.
What your company does
- Adopts or confirms a written non-retaliation policy, and agrees not to try to identify anonymous reporters.
- Posts the hotline information where employees will see it.
- Designates alternate contacts for reports that involve leadership.
Technology and data
The hotline runs on commercial phone and AI voice services. Before any client’s hotline goes live, the firm puts business terms in place with those vendors covering confidentiality and data retention, and the AI is supervised by a lawyer as Texas ethics guidance expects. Each client’s reports are stored separately, anonymous reports are kept free of the caller’s number, access is limited and logged, and every call opens with notice that it is transcribed.
Questions about the compliance hotline
Who answers the hotline?
An automated AI voice assistant takes the initial report at any hour and says up front that it is an AI. An attorney at Crawford Law reviews every report on the response standard set out in the engagement letter, and urgent reports are flagged for immediate attention. A lawyer is not on the line around the clock.
Is it anonymous?
Callers can choose not to give their name, and anonymous reports are stored without the caller's phone number. Callers get a report number and PIN to follow up. Anonymity has limits: phone carriers keep their own call records, email is never anonymous, and in a small workplace the details of a report can sometimes point to who made it. Callers are told this.
Does the firm represent the employees who call?
No. Crawford Law represents the company. Callers are told that at the start of every call, the assistant does not give them legal advice, and the firm will not represent a client's employees against that client. Callers remain free to talk to their own lawyer or to any government agency.
Does this make my company compliant, or make reports privileged?
No service can promise either. A good reporting channel is an important part of a compliance program and can support certain defenses, but compliance depends on what the company does with reports. Routing reports to counsel may help support privilege for some later investigation material, but that depends on the facts and is not guaranteed.
Can a public company use it for Sarbanes-Oxley reporting?
The hotline is designed for private employers and is not offered as a public company's Sarbanes-Oxley audit committee channel.
What does it cost?
The first 15-minute call is free. The hotline is quoted up front, with a setup fee and a monthly fee by tier. The shared line is designed to make a lawyer-reviewed reporting channel practical for small businesses. Investigations and other follow-on work are quoted separately.
Set up a hotline your employees will trust.
Start with a free 15-minute call. Setup and monthly fees are quoted up front, with a shared option designed for small businesses.