As importers await outcomes from the Trump Administration's trade negotiations, a series of newly imposed tariffs continues to impact a broad spectrum of imported products and related supply chains. Businesses are currently...more
7/18/2025
/ Customs ,
Customs and Border Protection ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Evasion ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Importers ,
Imports ,
International Trade ,
Risk Management ,
Strategic Planning ,
Supply Chain ,
Tariffs ,
Whistleblowers
The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) on June 27, 2025, announced a comprehensive, full-scale audit of its 8(a) Business Development Program (8(a) Program), marking a significant escalation in federal oversight of...more
7/2/2025
/ 8(a) Program ,
Audits ,
Bribery ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraud ,
Government Investigations ,
Joint Venture ,
SBA ,
Small Business ,
Whistleblowers
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on May 19, 2025, that it would use the False Claims Act (FCA) against institutions and contractors receiving federal funding that "knowingly" violate federal civil rights laws...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ or Department) announced on May 12, 2025, new investigative and policy priorities, as well as changes to current DOJ guidance, that could have a significant impact on the prosecution of...more
5/15/2025
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
China ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Financial Crimes ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
New Guidance ,
Non-Prosecution Agreements ,
Significant Transnational Criminal Organization ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ or the Department) has published statistics on False Claims Act (FCA) settlements and judgments for fiscal year (FY) 2024, a year in which the Department saw the highest number of qui tam...more
2/5/2025
/ Cybersecurity ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Statistics ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Government Agencies ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
PHI ,
Qui Tam ,
Whistleblowers
Whistleblower programs are the gifts that keep giving to enforcement agencies, driving a record number of cases, sanctions and awards across multiple agencies. In this ninth installment of Season's Readings, we revisit some...more
12/20/2024
/ Appointments Clause ,
Article II ,
CFTC ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Enforcement Statistics ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
FinCEN ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
Late last week, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed its complaint-in-intervention in a qui tam lawsuit against the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), alleging that the university failed to meet certain...more
8/28/2024
/ Compliance ,
Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
DFARS ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
False Statements ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraud ,
Implied Certification ,
Internal Controls ,
Invoices ,
NIST ,
Qui Tam ,
Security and Privacy Controls ,
Universities ,
US Air Force ,
Whistleblowers
After announcing at the ABA White Collar Crime Conference last winter that it would engage in a months-long "policy sprint," the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ or Department) released its Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot...more
8/6/2024
/ CFTC ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Extortion ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinCEN ,
Healthcare ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ or Department) has published statistics on False Claims Act (FCA) settlements and judgments for fiscal year (FY) 2023, noting that this was the highest number of settlements and judgments...more
Continuing its focus on incentivizing prompt and voluntary self-disclosure of criminal misconduct, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced earlier this month a new U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Safe Harbor Policy...more
10/23/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Declination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement ,
Mergers ,
Policy Statement ,
Remediation ,
Safe Harbors ,
Voluntary Disclosure
The U.S. Attorney's Offices (USAOs) Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy, announced on Feb. 22, 2023, sets forth a nationwide standard for how USAOs will define and credit corporate self-disclosures of misconduct by employees or...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) on Feb. 7, 2023, released its annual statistics for its civil False Claims Act (FCA) and fraud cases from the 2022 fiscal year (FY). Up front, we see the following key takeaways ...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), through Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr., announced on Jan. 17, 2023, "the first significant changes" to its Corporate Enforcement Policy (CEP) since 2017. The revisions...more
1/23/2023
/ Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Declination ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Federal Sentencing Guidelines ,
Policy Updates ,
Remediation ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes
False Claims Act (FCA) cases, particularly in the government contracts space, often have several defendants; prime contractors, subcontractors, vendors and individuals are all common targets. In healthcare FCA cases, with...more
In remarks to the American Bar Association (ABA) Institute on White Collar Crime on March 3, 2022, Attorney General Merrick Garland underscored the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) renewed emphasis on corporate...more
3/7/2022
/ Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Priorities ,
Individual Accountability ,
Merrick Garland ,
Personal Liability ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
New Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco on October 28, 2021, previewed the U.S. Department of Justice's (DOJ) enhanced stance on corporate crime. Monaco announced the formation of a Corporate Crime Advisory Group, which will...more
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has a renewed focus on government contracting and, more specifically, anti-competitive behavior in federal procurement. As mentioned in a prior blog post, the DOJ's Antitrust Division...more
3/18/2020
/ Antitrust Division ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Bid Rigging ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Authority ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Agency Taskforce ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Procurement Systems ,
Market Allocation Scheme ,
Price-Fixing ,
RICO ,
The Clayton Act
Trade secrets can be stolen at any point, and such theft can be prosecuted by the Department of Justice. This is evident in recently unsealed charges brought against a software engineer who stole source code from his United...more
7/16/2019
/ China ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Espionage Act ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Indictments ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Misappropriation ,
Source Code ,
Trade Secrets
DOJ Releases Guidance on Cooperation Credit in False Claims Act Cases -
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) released guidelines for evaluating self-disclosures and awarding cooperation credit in False Claims Act (FCA)...more
Companies facing liability under the False Claims Act (FCA) often desire early resolution with the Department of Justice (DOJ) through settlement. Hand in hand with the decision to settle comes the decision of whether or not...more
4/26/2019
/ Cooperation ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Sentencing Guidelines ,
Fraud ,
Qui Tam ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Remedial Actions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Self-Policing ,
Self-Reporting
In December 2018, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) released its annual statistics for its civil False Claims Act (FCA) and fraud cases from the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2018 (fiscal year 2018). The DOJ reports it...more
A recent dismissal of a qui tam action demonstrates there exists an affirmative approach for disposing of wasteful and meritless non-intervened qui tam claims without the time and expense of protracted litigation with...more
10/17/2018
/ Cooperative Agreements ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dismissals ,
Energy Sector ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Frivolous Lawsuits ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Inventions ,
Motion to Dismiss ,
Nuclear Power ,
Patent Applications ,
Patents ,
Qui Tam ,
Relators ,
Research and Development
Theft of trade secrets typically spurs civil actions against the offender, but theft of trade secrets can also be prosecuted criminally under the Economic Espionage Act, 18 U.S.C. § 1831 et seq. (the “Act”) and other related...more
9/24/2018
/ Criminal Convictions ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Espionage Act ,
FBI ,
Foreign Governments ,
Former Employee ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Misappropriation ,
Source Code ,
Trade Secrets
The Department of Justice (DOJ) recently announced the creation of a Task Force on Market Integrity and Consumer Fraud. Relevant to the contracting and healthcare community, the task force is designed to strengthen the...more
7/19/2018
/ Antitrust Division ,
Civil Liability ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Consumer Fraud ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Digital Currency ,
Elder Abuse ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Executive Orders ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
FBI ,
Federal Agency Taskforce ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Fraud ,
Fraudulent Procurement ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
HEAT ,
Investigations ,
Medicare Fraud Strike Force ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Tax Division ,
Tax Fraud ,
Trump Administration ,
Veterans
Most practitioners are aware that the statute of limitations under the False Claims Act (FCA) is six years after the date on which the violation is committed. 31 U.S.C. § 3731(b)(1). That is, unless the FCA’s tolling...more
5/2/2018
/ Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dismissals ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Contractors ,
First-to-File ,
Frivolous Lawsuits ,
Government Officials ,
OIG ,
Qui Tam ,
Real Party in Interest ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Time-Barred Claims ,
Tolling Provisions