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The Department of Justice (DOJ), via messaging from its leadership, has made clear it will prioritize and pursue aggressive civil False Claims Act (FCA) enforcement against companies that receive federal dollars. As the government’s primary civil remedy to redress fraud against the government, the FCA generates billions of dollars in annual DOJ settlements and judgments with the majority initiated by whistleblower qui tam lawsuits.

Vinson & Elkins is pleased to offer this round-up of recent developments in federal enforcement, with a particular emphasis on changes during the first few months of the second Trump administration.

On May 19, 2025, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a memorandum announcing the creation of the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Civil Rights Fraud Initiative (the Initiative), which directs DOJ attorneys to utilize the False Claims Act (FCA), 31 U.S.C. § 3729 et seq., to combat knowing violations of civil rights law and the false certification of compliance with such laws by recipients of federal funds such as educational institutions and federal contractors.

On April 2, 2025, President Donald Trump announced a new tariff regime under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (“IEEPA”), citing national security concerns. This regime includes a 10 percent baseline tariff for all countries and higher “reciprocal tariffs” for approximately 90 countries, effective April 5, and April 9, 2025, with additional potential tariffs threatened in the future. The new tariffs would significantly impact corporations, particularly those with supply-chain exposure in China and other Southeastern Asian countries.

On January 13, 2023, the Supreme Court granted certiorari in two consolidated cases from the Seventh Circuit to consider whether a defendant relying on an objectively reasonable interpretation of an ambiguous law acts “knowingly” in violation of the False Claims Act (“FCA”).