Legal developments for contractors to consider, enforcement outlook for 2017, and more in this issue of Government Contracts Update

Legal Developments for Contractors to Consider

There have been a number of legal developments in the past month that may affect government contractors, both with respect to legislative and regulatory activity, as well as notable court decisions. This article gives a brief review of those developments, as well as our 2017 Enforcement Outlook for non-profit federal grant recipients.

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The Fourth Circuit Upholds the Government's Veto Authority over FCA Settlements

On February 15, 2017, in United States ex rel. Michaels v. Agape Senior Community, Inc., the Fourth Circuit held that the federal government has unreviewable veto authority of proposed settlements of False Claims Act (FCA) qui tam actions even when the government has not intervened. This case highlights how important it is for contractors settling alleged false claims to ensure the government is involved in settlement negotiations early in the process, or at least that the government will not oppose a proposed settlement once it is reached.

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Enforcement Outlook for 2017: Don't Expect a Pro-Business Government to Lighten Up on Government Contractors and Grant Recipients

In years past, many believed a transition from a Democrat-controlled government to a Republican-controlled government would mean an easing of compliance standards and a shift away from enforcement actions. However, rooting out fraud has long been a bipartisan effort, and although the Trump administration signals some relief in the form of a regulatory rollback, there have been several signals indicating that the federal government may continue its recent year-over-year trend of record False Claims Act (FCA) recoveries.

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