The U.S. Department of Justice seeks to use the potential for a reduced penalty amount and damages to encourage self-disclosure of misconduct and cooperation during FCA investigations.
On May 7, 2019, the U.S. Department...more
5/15/2019
/ Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Government Agencies ,
Government Investigations ,
New Guidance ,
Qui Tam ,
Remedial Actions ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Voluntary Disclosure
The Situation: False Claims Act ("FCA") cases are high-risk matters, given their potential to result in "company-busting judgments."
The Strategy: The high stakes require defendants and their counsel to treat the budget...more
The Decision: A divided Sixth Circuit panel held that allegations of submitting late-signed supporting documents to Medicare could plead False Claims Act ("FCA") materiality and scienter.
The Reasoning: Timing regulations...more
7/16/2018
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Certification Requirements ,
Dismissals ,
En Banc Review ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
False Implied Certification Theory ,
FRCP 9(b) ,
Materiality ,
Medicare ,
Pleading Standards ,
Qui Tam ,
Scienter ,
Signatures ,
Universal Health Services Inc v United States ex rel Escobar
The Situation: The U.S. Department of Defense has faced criticism from the Office of Inspector General and the Government Accountability Office concerning its handling of commercial item procurements.
The Response: As a...more
The Situation: The False Claims Act imposes civil liability on any person or entity that "knowingly presents, or causes to be presented" to the U.S. government "a false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval."
The...more
1/25/2018
/ Conditions of Payment ,
Failure To Disclose ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
False Implied Certification Theory ,
Federal Contractors ,
Health Care Providers ,
Implied Certification ,
Materiality ,
Qui Tam ,
SCOTUS ,
Universal Health Services Inc v United States ex rel Escobar
The Situation: Despite recently acknowledging the significant burden imposed by frivolous False Claims Act claims and affirming its statutory grant of power to dismiss meritless claims brought by relators, DOJ has maintained...more
The Situation: The Government Accountability Office publishes an annual report detailing bid protest activity for the prior fiscal year.
The Result: The fiscal year 2017 report shows that the sustain rate for bid protests...more
The Situation: GAO sustained a protest challenging a task order award where the awardee's proposal included letters of intent that mentioned an arbitration agreement that was required as a condition of employment.
The...more
In 2014, the U.S. Government Accountability Office ("GAO") sustained a protest by Paradigm Technologies, Inc., challenging the award of a contract to an offeror, where its proposed contract program manager (a key personnel...more
The U.S. Court of Federal Claims ("COFC") recently ruled that the Department of Veterans Affairs ("VA") must apply the "Rule of Two" before consulting the AbilityOne list when buying goods and services....more
In our December 2016 Commentary on the "Government Contracts Ramifications of the Trump Election" and our January 2017 update, we predicted that the Trump Administration would seek to strengthen domestic preferences in...more
5/4/2017
/ Buy America ,
Buy American Act ,
Domestic Hiring Policy ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Contractors ,
Public Interest Waivers ,
Public Procurement Policies ,
Steel Industry ,
Subcontractors ,
Supply Chain ,
Trump Administration ,
USTR ,
WTO