DoD Memo Recalls 'Essential' Civilian Workers
Client Alert | 1 min read | 10.09.13
On October 5, Secretary Hagel issued guidance relating to DoD's implementation of the Pay Our Military Act (POMA), which passed just hours before the government "shutdown" at midnight on September 30 and provides for funding certain DoD functions while interim or full-year appropriations for FY 2014 are not in effect. The memo, crafted in consultation with DOJ, states that POMA permits funding for active duty military and civilian employees "whose responsibilities provide support to service members providing active service and their families" and "contribute to sustaining capabilities and Force Readiness" (a list which at least initially did not include DCAA auditors, CIO functions, or DCMO functions, although it appears that at least some auditors at some locations have been recalled) and permits expenditure of "such sums as are necessary to provide pay and allowances to contractors of DoD who[m] the Secretary determines are providing support to members of the Armed Forces in active service" (though the memo notes that DoD lawyers are still analyzing what that means).
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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
