AI note taker consent: the federal rule, all-party states and how to give notice

AI note taker consent: the federal rule and the all-party states

The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press (RCFP) says federal law requires the consent of at least one party before a conversation is recorded, and that about 11 states primarily require all parties. So tell everyone before any AI note taker starts. This page gives background from named sources and is not legal advice.

The federal statute, 18 U.S.C. 2511, treats prior consent from one of the parties as enough, unless the communication is intercepted to commit a criminal or tortious act. RCFP names the all-party states as California, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Washington. It marks Michigan with a caveat: the all-party rule applies at least to recordings made by a third party who is not involved in the conversation.

For calls across states, RCFP advises assuming that the stricter state law will apply.

Is AI note taking recording?

Krisp's Terms of Use treat recording and transcribing together. They say that if you cannot obtain proper consent from your online meeting guests, you should not use Krisp or any feature that records or transcribes online meetings. They also make the customer responsible for laws requiring proper notifications and consents.

RCFP says a conversation can be recorded when the parties are warned of the recording and continue with the conversation. The sources cited here do not say whether a note taker counts as a recording under a particular state's law, so a team with participants in an all-party state should ask a lawyer.

How to give notice: settings, a spoken line and the invite

Krisp has a setting named Notify others you're using Krisp, under Settings, Privacy & Consent, that lets other participants know a note taker is running; Krisp's Note Taker article lists it for Core and Advanced. Krisp warns that some platforms may block chat messages or audio prompts, so say the same thing aloud. AI note taker for client meetings covers how this plays out when a client hosts.

Bot-free capture adds no participant to the call, so nothing on the participant list shows that notes are running. Notice has to come from a setting, the invite or your own voice. The guide to note takers without a bot lists the bot-free tools.

Consent settings an admin controls

In Google Workspace, an administrator may require all participants to give explicit consent before certain meeting features run. The setting is off by default. Where it is on, a participant gives consent by clicking Start, Join or Continue.

In Microsoft Teams, a meeting policy in the Teams admin center, under Meetings, then Meeting policies, can require participants to give explicit consent to be recorded or transcribed. If an organizer sets Copilot to Off, Copilot, recording and transcription are all disabled for that meeting. Microsoft adds that, depending on your region, you may need everyone's permission.

Krisp's Advanced and Enterprise plans list Enforce recording mode among their admin controls; Core shows a dash.

A consent line and disclaimer for your team

Put these points in the invite and repeat them at the start of the call:

• Name the tool and say it will write notes or a transcript of the call.
• Say who receives the notes afterward, such as everyone on the invite or the team only.
• Ask permission first, as Granola recommends: anyone who objects should say so before the notes start.
• Say it aloud as well as in a setting, because platforms can block a tool's own prompts.

A spoken opening can be as short as this: "An AI note taker will write up this call. Tell us now if you would rather it was off." A Google Workspace team that wants the platform to tell every participant can use Take notes for me. Krisp's 7-day free trial needs no credit card, which leaves time to agree on a notice routine before paying. AI note taker privacy concerns covers where the notes go next.