According to a memorandum issued on May 19, 2025, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) will use the False Claims Act as a tool to enforce federal civil rights laws. The new policy memo has serious potential implications for federal contractors and grant recipients. A link to the memo is
here.
Authored by DOJ Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, the memo announced the creation of DOJ’s Civil Rights Fraud Initiative (the “CRFI”). A joint effort of the DOJ Civil Rights Division and the Civil Division’s Fraud Section, the CRFI “will utilize the False Claims Act to investigate and, as appropriate, pursue claims against any recipient of federal funds that knowingly violates federal civil rights laws.” To bolster the efforts of the CRFI, every U.S. Attorney’s Office across the country has been instructed to assign at least one prosecutor to advance the efforts of the CRFI.
The CRFI mobilizes a nationwide cadre of government attorneys and prosecutors to search for allegedly false civil rights compliance certifications. Explicitly implementing the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and President Trump’s January 21, 2025, Executive Order 14173 regarding DEI, the DOJ memo provides two examples of situations that may draw scrutiny.
First, the memo warns colleges and universities that certify compliance with federal laws such as Titles IV, VI, and IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, when accepting federal funds. According to the memo, an academic institution that “encourages antisemitism, refuses to protect Jewish students, allows men to intrude into women’s bathrooms, or requires women to compete against men in athletic competitions” while certifying compliance with federal civil rights laws could be violating the False Claims Act.
Second, the memo explains that the CRFI will investigate contractors and recipients of federal funds that “certify compliance with civil rights laws while knowingly engaging in racist preferences, mandates, policies, programs, and activities, including through diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs that assign benefits or burdens on race, ethnicity, or national origin.”
The CRFI is further noteworthy because it contemplates the use of resources outside of DOJ’s umbrella. According to the memo, the CRFI will coordinate with representatives from other federal agencies, state attorneys general, and local law enforcement. The memo also highlights an important role for qui tam relators: in addition to recognizing that the False Claims Act gives private citizens the right to bring lawsuits on behalf of the federal government, the memo specifically and “strongly encourages these lawsuits.”
Federal contractors, grant recipients, and others who receive federal funding should review the substance of any potential DEI certifications submitted in connection with their invoices, applications for funds, or other requests for payment. What may have been compliant in 2024 may no longer be, and the consequences of a prolonged False Claims Act investigation can be devastating.
[View source.]
