1. Home
  2. |Insights
  3. |Fifth Circuit Breaks New Ground on Vicarious Liability Under the Anti-Kickback Act

Fifth Circuit Breaks New Ground on Vicarious Liability Under the Anti-Kickback Act

Client Alert | 1 min read | 07.25.13

In U.S. ex rel. Vavra v. Kellogg Brown & Root, Inc. (July 19, 2013), the Fifth Circuit addressed, as a matter of first impression, whether the double damages provision of the Anti-Kickback Act (AKA) can be applied to a corporate entity under a vicarious liability theory or whether doing so would render the single damages provision that applies to corporate entities whose "employees" violate the AKA superfluous. The Fifth Circuit held that the AKA does allow for vicarious liability when an employee is acting either within her scope of employment or under "apparent authority," as defined by the common law of agency.


Insights

Client Alert | 3 min read | 04.25.24

JUST RELEASED: EPA’s Bold New Strategic Civil-Criminal Enforcement Collaboration Policy

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) just issued its new Strategic Civil-Criminal Enforcement Policy, setting the stage for the new manner in which the agency manages its pollution investigations. David M. Uhlmann, the head of OECA, signed the Policy memorandum on April 17, 2024, in order to ensure that EPA’s civil and criminal enforcement offices collaborate efficiently and consistently in cases across the nation. The Policy states, “EPA must exercise enforcement discretion reasonably when deciding whether a particular matter warrants criminal, civil, or administrative enforcement. Criminal enforcement should be reserved for the most egregious violations.” Uhlmann repeated this statement during a luncheon on April 23, 2024, while also emphasizing the new level of energy this collaborative effort has brought to the enforcement programs....

View All Insights