We just released Episode 34 of the False Claims Act Insights podcast where I had a great conversation with Jody Rudman about the new Zafirov oral argument into whether qui tams are unconstitutional. We discuss how the role of whistleblowers in the False Claims Act is unique among government whistleblower rewards programs, in that False
On December 11, Matt Diehr, Kyle Gilster, and Rebecca Furdek presented this month’s session in Husch Blackwell’s Government Enforcement, Compliance & Investigations webinar series. They highlighted the capabilities of the firm’s State Attorney’s General practice through a robust discussion about trends in multistate litigation. The presentation focused on enforcement trends in consumer
This year, the Department of Justice (DOJ) increased its focus on white-collar crime enforcement in some areas, prioritized new areas, and shifted resources away from others. Many of these changes are reflected in Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti’s May 12, 2025, memorandum to the DOJ’s Criminal Division (Galeotti Memo), which highlighted 10 high-impact areas of white-collar crime for enforcement:[1]
Husch Blackwell has formally launched its Congressional Investigations practice to assist clients across industries with all types of congressional inquiries. Our bipartisan team includes seasoned trial lawyers with specific experience in congressional investigations, former senior staff from executive branch agencies well-versed in responding to congressional inquiries, and former senior staffers from congressional committees involved in
In Episode 33 of False Claims Act Insights, Claire Postman and I tackle a critical challenge for healthcare providers: balancing HIPAA compliance with civil investigative demands (CIDs) in False Claims Act investigations. Claire explains HIPAA’s general prohibition on disclosing protected health information and the key exceptions that permit disclosure when required by law, such as
Todd Gee and I recently published an article in Risk Management, discussing in detail the growing risk of state-level False Claims Act (FCA) enforcement for state government contractors and recipients of state funds or benefits. While many government funding recipients are familiar with the federal FCA, state legislatures across the nation are either establishing—or
Recent Decisions Signal Growing Minority on Challenges to False Claims Act Constitutionality.
Background
The False Claims Act (“FCA”)’s qui tam provisions—which empower private litigants, known as “relators,” to prosecute claims on the Government’s behalf—continue to face constitutional scrutiny, with recent judicial opinions reviving concerns over whether the provisions violate Article II of the U.S. Constitution. As these challenges gain traction, qui tam defendants should be aware of the evolving legal landscape and the potential implications for FCA defense strategies.
On November 12, 2025, Wendy Arends and Mark Tobey presented the latest session in Husch Blackwell’s Government Enforcement, Compliance & Investigations webinar series. They discussed current updates in antitrust enforcement in detail. Covering federal and state merger enforcement first—one key takeaway at the federal level, the agencies continue to take HSR and Second Request compliance
On October 2, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas stayed Commodity Futures Trading Commission, et al. v. TMTE Inc., et al., a case with potentially consequential implications for the commodities and derivatives markets. As we discussed in our prior update, this $185 million fraud suit was filed against two California precious metals dealers by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and 30 state regulators. In July, the Court denied summary judgment to both parties. The most significant holding from that order was the finding that gold and silver are not commodities under Section 1 of the CFTC’s enacting statute, the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA).
Since 1934, the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) Tax Division has been responsible for handling both DOJ’s civil and criminal tax enforcement. The Tax Division works with the IRS to oversee criminal investigations and the prosecution of tax crimes (supervising and coordinating with local United States Attorneys) and engage in civil enforcement activities including