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“Good” Enough: Court Finds Certification Merely Defective on Pass-Through Claim

Client Alert | 1 min read | 05.04.16

In M.K. Ferguson Co. v. U.S. (Apr. 14, 2016), a case involving a pass-through claim compelled by the prime’s bankruptcy judge, the CFC denied the government’s motion to dismiss and held that the prime’s initial pass-through certification – which stated only that the prime was “authorized to certify the claim” – was not a “failure to certify” (which would have cost the court its jurisdiction) but was instead a “defective certification” that the prime could (and did) cure through its subsequent certification. Although the prime contractor had previously expressed “legitimate concerns as to the amount claimed” to the bankruptcy judge, the CFC concluded that the prime’s compliance with the bankruptcy court’s order showed the prime’s sponsorship was made in “good faith” and remanded to the agency for a final decision, after holding that the prime’s potential liability to the subcontractor (despite the discharge of liability in bankruptcy) was enough to satisfy the “modern” Severin doctrine.

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Client Alert | 3 min read | 09.15.25

Senate Finance Committee Looking to Take White River to the Train Station, Confirms DOJ Investigation into Tribal Tax Credits

On August 19, 2025, the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance (“Senate Finance Committee”) sent Paul Atkins, Chairman, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) a letter calling on the SEC to investigate White River Energy Corp (“White River”). In the letter, the Senate Finance Committee confirmed a criminal investigation into White River related to the sale of so-called “tribal tax credits” that according to both Congress and the IRS, do not exist. The letter further states that White River allegedly earned millions of dollars selling these credits and has not been forthcoming with investors regarding the existence of the criminal investigation. According to the Senate Finance Committee, White River has failed to file financial disclosure documents with the SEC since March 15, 2024, missing six consecutive reporting periods. The letter instructs White River to disclose the existence of the DOJ criminal tax investigation, and calls on the SEC to take action if White River fails to do so....

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