Widening a Split, Sixth Circuit Says FCA Amendments Apply to Pending Cases, Not Claims
Client Alert | less than 1 min read | 11.06.12
When Congress amended the False Claims Act in 2009, it provided that the change broadening the liability provision for false statements should apply retroactively to all "claims" under the FCA that were pending on or after June 7, 2008. In U.S. ex rel. Sanders v. Allison Engine Co. (6th Cir. Nov. 2, 2012), the Sixth Circuit declined to follow the Ninth and Eleventh Circuits' holdings that this amendment applies only to requests or demands for money or property that were pending as of June 7, 2008, and, instead, followed the Second and Seventh in finding that this amendment applies to any "civil action or case" that was pending then.
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
