On Friday, January 13, the Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari in eight cases:
U.S. ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc.; U.S. ex rel. Proctor v. Safeway, Inc., Nos. 21-1326, 22-111: These consolidated cases involve the interpretation of the scienter standard under the False Claims Act (FCA). Both cases arise out of the Seventh Circuit, where a divided panel affirmed dismissal of FCA claims against retailers for alleged fraudulent billing involving prescription drugs. The question presented is: Whether and when a defendant’s contemporaneous subjective understanding or beliefs about the lawfulness of its conduct are relevant to whether it “knowingly” violated the FCA.
Groff v. DeJoy, No. 22-174: This civil rights and employment law case addresses the standard governing “undue hardship” in employers’ accommodations of employees’ religious beliefs and practices. The questions presented are: (1) Whether the Court should disapprove the more-than-de-minimis-cost test for refusing religious accommodations under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 stated in Trans World Airlines, Inc. v. Hardison; and (2) whether an employer may demonstrate “undue hardship on the conduct of the employer’s business” under Title VII merely by showing that the requested accommodation burdens the employee’s coworkers rather than the business itself.
Tyler v. Hennepin County, No. 22-166: This case involves the Fifth Amendment’s “takings clause” and the Eighth Amendment’s ban on...
Dish Wireless LLC agreed to pay roughly $17 million to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act, common law, and the Communications Act of 1934 relating to claims submitted to Fed...