Government Program Fraud, False Claims Act & Qui Tam Litigation Playbook

On January 12, 2021, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California announced the first civil settlement resolving alleged violations of the False Claims Act (“FCA”) based on false statements made by a borrower and the company’s Chief Executive Officer in loan applications under the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”).

To address the economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis, Congress has allocated nearly $660 billion to the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”) in forgivable loans to eligible small businesses, non-profits, and certain tribal entities.