OGE Issues Final Rule On Post-Employment Conflict Of Interest Restrictions
Client Alert | 1 min read | 07.01.08
The Office of Government Ethics (OGE) issued a 42-page final rule (http://www.crowell.com/PDF/Federal-Register_06-25-08.pdf) providing guidance, including examples, on various post-employment restrictions under section 207 of title 18, including the permanent, one-year, and two-year representational bans applicable to former government employees and, relatedly, the companies that hire them. Because some of the key terms in title 207 are also used in other conflict of interest statutes and regulations -- e.g., the procurement integrity compensation ban in title 41 and FAR 3.104, as well as the conflict of interest restriction governing employment discussions between government personnel and the private sector under section 208 -- the OGE rule has broad applicability and relevance.
Insights
Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.21.25
On November 7, 2025, in Thornton v. National Academy of Sciences, No. 25-cv-2155, 2025 WL 3123732 (D.D.C. Nov. 7, 2025), the District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed a False Claims Act (FCA) retaliation complaint on the basis that the plaintiff’s allegations that he was fired after blowing the whistle on purported illegally discriminatory use of federal funding was not sufficient to support his FCA claim. This case appears to be one of the first filed, and subsequently dismissed, following Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s announcement of the creation of the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative on May 19, 2025, which “strongly encourages” private individuals to file lawsuits under the FCA relating to purportedly discriminatory and illegal use of federal funding for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in violation of Executive Order 14173, Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (Jan. 21, 2025). In this case, the court dismissed the FCA retaliation claim and rejected the argument that an organization could violate the FCA merely by “engaging in discriminatory conduct while conducting a federally funded study.” The analysis in Thornton could be a sign of how forthcoming arguments of retaliation based on reporting allegedly fraudulent DEI activity will be analyzed in the future.
Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.20.25
Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.20.25
Client Alert | 6 min read | 11.19.25
