Call recording laws
Recording interview calls in Michigan
Michigan is an all-party consent state. Everyone on the call must agree to the recording before you press record.
Michigan is an all-party consent state. Everyone on the call must agree to the recording before you press record.
Last reviewed July 2026. General information, not legal advice.
What Michigan law says
Under Mich. Comp. Laws § 750.539c, Michigan requires the consent of every party to a private conversation before it may be recorded. This covers phone calls and video interviews alike: if you are recording a candidate call, the candidate has to agree first.
Worth knowing
Michigan's statute has a debated 'participant exception': some courts have held that a person who is part of the conversation may record it. The case law is unsettled, so the safe practice for business calls is all-party consent.
What this means for recruiter calls
For a recruiter in Michigan, this means consent is not a nicety, it is the legal gate. Before recording a phone screen or video interview, tell the candidate you are recording and get a clear yes. Do it at the top of the call, before anything substantive is said.
The good news: candidates almost never object, and asking well actually builds trust. A simple script works: "I'd like to record this call so I can focus on our conversation instead of taking notes. The recording stays on my computer and isn't shared with any third-party service. Is that okay with you?"
The interstate problem
Recruiting calls cross state lines constantly, and it is not settled which state's law governs a call between, say, a one-party state and California. Courts have applied the stricter state's law. The only policy that scales is to treat every candidate call as if it were in an all-party state: disclose, get a yes, and log it. That habit makes the choice-of-law question irrelevant.
How to record candidate calls safely in Michigan
Disclose at the top of the call
Before substantive conversation starts, say you are recording and why. Use the same script every time so it becomes automatic.
Get a clear verbal yes
A nod on video is not something you can point to later. Ask the question and let the candidate answer it.
Log when and how consent was captured
Note the date, time, and method. If a question ever comes up months later, the log is what protects you.
Keep the recording under your control
Every third party that touches the audio is another place consent questions multiply. Recordings that never leave your own machine keep the answer simple.
How HireScribe handles consent
- A consent gate prompts you to inform the candidate before recording starts and logs a timestamped attestation.
- Jurisdiction-aware: tell it where the call parties are and it reflects one-party vs all-party rules.
- Your disclosure script lives in Settings, so every recruiter says the same correct thing every time.
- Recordings, transcripts, and summaries stay on your machine. No cloud vendor to add to the consent question.
FAQ: recording interviews in Michigan
This page is general information for recruiters, not legal advice. Laws change and individual situations differ. For specific questions, talk to an employment lawyer licensed in Michigan.