The Justice Department and a veritable army of whistleblowers’ counsel continue to use the False Claims Act (FCA) to bring suits against banks and mortgage companies. In 2017 alone, the Department of Justice obtained $543 million in FCA settlements and judgments from the financial services industry.
To keep you informed on the status of the
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA) makes it unlawful for certain classes of persons and entities to make payments to foreign government officials to assist in obtaining or retaining business. On November 29, 2017, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein announced the addition of an FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy to the U.S. Attorneys’ Manual,
The Seventh Circuit finally abandoned its “but-for” causation standard for False Claims Act (FCA) damages. The decision comes 25 years after the Seventh Circuit first adopted its controversial standard requiring only a showing that an injury would not have occurred if not for the conduct. The Seventh Circuit has long been the lone outlier among
A federal court in Texas recently entered a massive judgment against a mortgage originator for financial crisis conduct, transforming an already severe $93 million jury verdict into a $298 million punishment, and issuing one of the first judicial opinions regarding how to assess penalties under the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989
The federal government continues to use the False Claims Act (FCA) as one of its prime enforcement tools against banks and mortgage companies. In 2016 alone, the Department of Justice obtained $1.6 billion in FCA settlements and judgments from the financial services industry. As it does each year, Bradley has assembled an overview of the
The Supreme Court’s decision in Universal Health Services v. United States ex rel. Escobar reframes when falsity may be implied under the False Claims Act (FCA) and raises the bar for materiality under the statute. Though the Court upholds the controversial theory of implied false certification, Escobar limits it to situations where both (1) a
On Monday, the Second Circuit overturned a jury verdict and $1.27 billion penalty against Bank of America imposed under the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989 (FIRREA), 12 U.S.C. § 1833a. Because the Government failed to demonstrate that Countrywide Home Loans, Inc. (Countrywide) intended at the time of contracting to defraud Fannie
Today, the Second Circuit affirmed the dismissal of False Claims Act (FCA) claims against Wells Fargo, finding a general certification of compliance with “any laws or regulations” too broad to support an FCA action and cautioning against an expansive reading of the FCA. Read the opinion in Bishop v. Wells Fargo & Co., Case
Last week, in U.S. ex rel. Advocates for Basic Legal Equality, Inc. (ABLE) v. U.S. Bank, the Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a False Claims Act (FCA) suit against U.S. Bank because the conduct alleged by the qui tam relator had previously been publicly disclosed in a consent order with the Office of
Liability under the False Claims Act (FCA) is premised on the submission of a claim for money or property either to a federal government “officer, employee, or agent” or, under certain circumstances, to a nongovernmental “contractor, grantee, or other recipient” of government funds. In a decision affirming the dismissal of a whistleblower’s FCA action, the