False Claims Act: Implied Certification Theory
Violations of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute (the “AKS”) have long served as a basis for liability under the federal False Claims Act (the “FCA”). Recently, however, there has been increasing uncertainty regarding how far...more
The False Claims Act’s (FCA) materiality requirement as articulated by the U.S. Supreme Court in Universal Health Servs., Inc. v. United States ex rel. Escobar, 579 U.S. 176 (2016) was again front and center, this time in a...more
Medical Supplier Agrees to Pay $29 Million for FCA Violations - Earlier this month, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and medical supplier Lincare Holdings Inc. reached an agreement to settle claims that Lincare violated...more
On July 25, 2023, U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), introduced a bill that aims to, among other things, make it easier for the government to satisfy the False Claims Act’s materiality requirement when the government has...more
On July 25, 2023, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL.) introduced amendments to the False Claims Act (FCA), a law that protects the federal government from fraud, saving taxpayers billions. The FCA...more
The Supreme Court issued a number of headline-grabbing decisions this term on topics like religious accommodation, LGBTQ protections, and consideration of race in college admissions. These decisions are wide-reaching and...more
On June 1, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in United States ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc. reversing a pair of False Claims Act (FCA) cases on review from the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. In...more
On June 1, 2023, the Supreme Court eliminated the “objectively reasonable” potential defense in False Claims Act cases, clarifying that the knowledge or scienter element for a False Claims Act (“FCA”) case is satisfied by...more
On June 1, 2023, the Supreme Court decided a pair of closely watched False Claims Act (FCA) cases, U.S. ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc., No. 21-1326, and U.S. ex rel. Proctor v. Safeway, Inc., No. 22-111....more
On April 18, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) heard oral argument in the most significant False Claims Act (FCA) case to reach the Court in recent years. The Court is examining the scienter requirement in the FCA –...more
The Supreme Court’s 2016 decision in Universal Health Services, Inc. v. United States ex rel. Escobar resolved a Circuit split regarding the implied certification theory as a basis for False Claims Act (FCA) liability. While...more
Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) recently criticized “activist judges” for rewriting the text of the False Claims Act to achieve their own policy goals, revealing plans to reintroduce legislation that would correct “unduly...more
In what may lead to the biggest FCA opinion in recent history, the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this month agreed to consider two cases addressing the necessary state of mind (i.e., “scienter”) to violate the FCA....more
In what could be the most significant development for False Claims Act (FCA) jurisprudence since Universal Health Services v. United States ex rel. Escobar, on January 13, 2023, the US Supreme Court agreed to consider whether...more
Courts are grappling with unique questions in the context of managed care programs in False Claims Act (FCA) cases. But are they getting it right? Two questions trending in courts relate to: (1) materiality under the FCA when...more
As previously discussed as a part of our ongoing FCA Fundamentals series, the False Claims Act (FCA) is the federal government’s most important and most effective tool for fighting fraud. While Congress has substantially...more
On January 25, in United States ex rel. Sheldon v. Allergan, No. 20-2330 (4th Cir., Jan. 25, 2022), the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit upheld a lower-court dismissal of a False Claims Act (FCA) case...more
On December 2, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia granted a motion to dismiss a False Claims Act (FCA) lawsuit brought by the United States and the Commonwealth of Virginia, which alleged that a...more
On October 28, the Senate Committee on the Judiciary approved for consideration by the full Senate the False Claims Amendments Act of 2021 (“FCA-2021”). The primary sponsor of the bill (S. 2428) is Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA),...more
On October 28, a majority of members on the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 15-7 to advance to the full Senate a bipartisan bill that would make a number of amendments to the False Claims Act (“FCA”), including one that...more
The Department of Justice recently announced a new initiative that aims to hold government contractors accountable when they fail to meet required cybersecurity standards. In announcing the “Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative” in...more
In a move that threatens to undermine some key defenses to liability under the False Claims Act, a bipartisan group of senators voted to advance the False Claims Amendments Act of 2021 (SB 2428) out of the Senate Judiciary...more
The Senate Judiciary Committee is currently considering amendments to the False Claims Act, a law originally passed during the Civil War that was modernized in 1986. The debate in the Judiciary Committee is being closely...more
A bipartisan bill introduced this summer would impact residential and behavioral health facilities and other health care providers sued under the federal False Claims Act (FCA), making defense of these actions more expensive...more
On July 26, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) introduced a long-promised bill to amend the False Claims Act (FCA). Not-so-creatively entitled the False Claims Act Amendments Act of 2021 (S.B. 2428), the proposed legislation is...more