As Federal Investigations Into Colleges and Universities Ramp Up, False Claims Act Enforcement Poses Additional Risks and Liabilities
August 7, 2025
In May 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a new initiative to use the False Claims Act (FCA), 31 U.S.C. § 3729 et seq., to “investigate and, as appropriate, pursue claims against any recipient of federal funds that knowingly violates federal civil rights laws,” subjecting targeted defendants to treble damages, penalties of up to $28,619 per claim, and attorney’s fees.
A contemporaneous memorandum released by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche explained that the Department would be monitoring educational institutions who receive federal funds for false certifications of compliance with Title IV, Title VI, and Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as well as the recent Supreme Court decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President & Fellows of Harvard College, 600 U.S. 181 (2023), which held that race-based affirmative action programs in college admissions violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
However, colleges and universities should be mindful that “false certification” liability under the FCA extends beyond certifications pertaining to civil rights laws.
Read our team’s analysis of the implications for colleges and universities.
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