If your law firm is going to have a blog, then the blog has to announce the wins—and it just so happens that we’re winning a heck of a lot recently.
Look out for some non-PPP settlement blogs coming soon!
Bracker & Marcus Successfully Litigates a PPP Case to Judgment
First, we are pleased to announce that we obtained a judgment in a PPP matter of $361,297.74. To our knowledge, this is the first successfully litigated—rather than settled—PPP-based False Claims Act case brought by a relator. The case is captioned United States ex rel. Collins v. Robertson, 1:22-CV-022634 (N.D. Ga.).
The judgment is being appealed to the Eleventh Circuit, so we hesitate to say more at this time, but congratulations to our whole team for its work on that matter. It is rare to obtain a judgment in a False Claims Act case.
Millions in PPP Settlements with Domestic Companies with a Large Foreign Parent
Like our recent settlement out of Mississippi, our relator Blockquote again has successfully brought three more cases alleging “foreign affiliation,” where a small domestic company failed to include the employees of its foreign parent company when determining whether it was a small business eligible for PPP funds.
First, the Eastern District of Tennessee settled claims that an industrial tooling company was ineligible for an $844K Second Draw loan. The settlement of more than $1.4 million constitutes 1.6 times the total loan forgiveness. Our congratulations and appreciation to Assistant United States Attorney Ben Cunningham for successfully resolving this matter in a speedy manner.
Second, the Western District of Washington settled claims against a duty-free shop alleging that it was ineligible for both First and Second Draw loans, totaling almost $1.8 million, because it was a subsidiary of a massive foreign conglomerate. The company paid more than $3.4 million to settle the claims, more than a 1.9 multiplier. Similarly, as reported in the same press release, the subsidiary of a multinational aerospace conglomerate returned more than $1.4 million to the SBA for its PPP loan, although no FCA liability was settled. These are our second and third PPP recoveries with Assistant United States Attorney Matt Waldrop, our fourth with this office, and we remain grateful for all of their efforts.
Third, the Southern District of Texas settled claims against an energy company alleging that it had improperly applied for and received a maximum $2 million Second Draw PPP loan despite being part of a multinational conglomerate. It paid 2 times the government’s damages, settling for more than $4.1 million. Congratulations to Assistant United States Attorney Paul Moore for his efforts to resolve this case.
$3.5 Million PPP Settlement with a Large Domestic Applicant
We return to the Northern District of Mississippi to report a $3.5 million settlement with a local group of companies that applied for two separate PPP loans when, if their employees were added together, they were collectively too large to receive PPP funds of about $2.3 million.
These settlements bring Blockquote’s total recoveries for the United States to more than $20 million!
And to toot our own horn a little bit, as best as we can tell, this gives us, and the esteemed Assistant United States Attorney Harland Webster, the three largest False Claims Act recoveries in the history of the Northern District of Mississippi. Because Jackson and the ports are in the southern part of the state, this district does not get a lot of attention in the world of the False Claims Act, but we love bringing cases there (and have really enjoyed our time in the beautiful college town of Oxford)!
PPP Settlements with Think Tanks
Our friends at Sidesolve are back on the scoreboard with a couple of six-figure settlements of their own. The CARES Act provides that the term “eligible entity” for PPP loans does not include any business concern or entity primarily engaged in political or lobbying activities, which shall include any entity that is organized for research or for engaging in advocacy in areas such as public policy or political strategy or otherwise describes itself as a think tank in any public documents.
Sidesolve had settlements of $2.1 million and $400K with two Washington, DC-based think tanks. These are Sidesolve’s third and fourth think tank settlements. Thank you to Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean Tepe for his work on these matters.
Bracker & Marcus Continues its Work Policing the Paycheck Protection Program
It is extraordinary work on the part of these AUSAs that they were able to achieve these settlements in the middle of the Government shutdown, and we applaud them and appreciate their efforts.
These settlements bring Bracker & Marcus’s total recoveries in PPP cases to more than $35 million, and we continue to file PPP cases every day. This program was rife with fraud, and if you are aware of an employer who received PPP funds for which it was not eligible, we encourage you to contact us.