Government In Jurisdictional Pickle Over Reverse-False-Claims Action For Unpaid Customs Duties
Client Alert | 1 min read | 06.20.06
The U.S Court of International Trade (CIT), in U.S. v. Universal Fruits & Vegetables Corp. (May 25, 2006), has dismissed for lack of jurisdiction the government's False Claims Act (FCA) lawsuit alleging that defendants who falsified country-of-origin information to avoid customs duties incurred treble damages and civil penalties by knowingly making false statements to decrease an obligation to pay money to the U.S. Because the case was at the CIT only because the Ninth Circuit had previously ruled that the forum originally chosen by the government, i.e., the federal district court for the Central District of California, lacked jurisdiction over this customs-related matter, the government now appears to be left without a forum, unless it appeals the CIT's decision to the Federal Circuit, in which case a conflict of circuits could result, with the Supreme Court eventually being asked to determine the jurisdictional fate of the government's potentially lucrative "reverse-false-claims" theory.
Insights
Client Alert | 15 min read | 08.20.25
In this eighth alert in our weekly series on the EU Pharma Package, we continue our overview of initiatives with respect to security of supply and shortage prevention and mitigation. Our last alert looked at how the Pharma Package seeks to address these issues. However, the Pharma Package does not exist in isolation, and in this alert we will discuss the interplay between its measures and those contained in other important EU initiatives such as the proposed Critical Medicines Act (CMA), and the Medicinal Countermeasures Strategy and the EU Stockpiling Strategy.
Client Alert | 2 min read | 08.19.25
Client Alert | 4 min read | 08.19.25
Forged Faces, Real Liability: Deepfake Laws Take Effect in Washington State and Pennsylvania
Client Alert | 1 min read | 08.19.25
