This initiative represents the DOJ's clearest statement yet that it intends to treat violations of civil rights laws as fraud on the federal government.
In our prior article, we examined the growing risk that the Justice Department would deploy the False Claims Act (FCA) to pursue entities that receive federal funds and operate diversity, equity and inclusion programs viewed as discriminatory under federal civil rights laws. On May 19, 2025, the DOJ formalized that risk, launching a new Civil Rights Fraud Initiative via a memorandum issued by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.
This initiative signals a dramatic escalation in FCA enforcement and represents the DOJ’s clearest statement yet that it intends to treat violations of civil rights laws as fraud on the federal government.
Although the DOJ has previously brought FCA enforcement actions against federal funds recipients who falsely certified compliance with federal standards, including anti-discrimination, the DOJ has never done so at the scale proposed in this initiative.
And while the Supreme Court has recently curtailed the power of federal prosecutors who bring fraud cases using novel theories involving attenuated economic harm, the high court’s decision on May 22, 2025, in Kousisis, et al. v. United States, makes clear that prosecutors may still have the leeway to bring the novel sort of cases contemplated in the deputy attorney general’s memorandum.
The initiative...
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