On May 19, 2025, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the formation of a Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, signaling a significant expansion of its use of the False Claims Act (FCA) to investigate and pursue claims against any recipient of federal funding that “knowingly violates federal civil rights laws” and “falsely certifies compliance with such laws.” The DOJ memo lays out the government’s current view of what constitutes a potential violation, highlighting “diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs that assign benefits or burdens on race, ethnicity, or national origin,” certain policies relating to gender identity, and issues relating to antisemitism.
DOJ’s initiative marks a notable escalation in government scrutiny and enforcement risk for grant recipients and federal contractors. DOJ has committed to standing up teams from both the Civil Division’s Fraud Section and the Civil Rights Division, as well as using attorneys from the 93 US Attorney’s Offices across the country, to investigate these matters. The Fraud Section and the Civil Rights Division will coordinate with the Criminal Division, other federal agencies, and state attorneys general. The DOJ memo also “strongly encourages” private whistleblowers to bring qui tam actions under the FCA, further increasing legal risk.
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