White Collar Law

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The U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division (DOJ) has announced a new initiative aimed at enhancing the detection and prosecution of antitrust violations. On July 7, 2025, the DOJ’s Antitrust Division, in collaboration with the U.S. Postal Service, launched the “Whistleblower Rewards Program.” This program is designed to incentivize individuals to report antitrust crimes affecting the postal service, its revenues, or property, offering whistleblowers the opportunity to receive up to 30% of any criminal fines recovered for violations.

On May 19, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the launch of a Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, which will use the False Claims Act (FCA) as a basis for investigating the diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices of recipients of federal funds, including colleges and universities who receive Title IV student financial aid and research grants. Calling out academic institutions specifically, the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative will invoke the FCA “against those who defraud the United States by taking its money while knowingly violating civil rights laws.”

On May 8, the Treasury Department announced a plan to introduce a new Known Investor portal as a key component of the “fast-track” process for investments by U.S. allies and partners under review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). This plan was previewed in the America First Investment Policy Memorandum, discussed in more detail here.

On May 12, 2025, the Head of the Criminal Division (the Criminal Division or Division) at the Department of Justice (DOJ), Matthew R. Galeotti, issued key memoranda to Criminal Division personnel on the Division’s new priorities and policies for prosecuting corporate and white-collar crimes and for the imposition of monitorships. On the same day, the Criminal Division also issued a revised Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy and long-awaited updates to the Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program. As expected, the Criminal Division’s position is consistent with prior memoranda issued by U.S. Attorney General (AG) Pam Bondi and the new Administration, which we previously discussed here.

The Treasury Department has taken initial steps to implement the Trump administration’s “total elimination” policy directed at certain drug trafficking cartels. Most recently, on May 1, Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued an alert advising about a rising trend of oil smuggling from Mexico across the U.S. border led by several cartels.

There are unprecedented risks and opportunities emerging for companies in the energy sector as the Trump administration’s priorities start to come into focus. Many of those are well-known to the industry. Here’s one that’s not: the Information and Communications Technology and Services (ICTS) rules, administered by the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS).

On April 25, Attorney General (AG) Pam Bondi issued an internal memorandum to Department of Justice (DOJ) employees, changing the DOJ’s policy on obtaining information from, or records of, members of the news media. Under this new policy, the DOJ will again use compulsory legal process, such as subpoenas, court orders, and search warrants, to compel the production of information from the news media, including when investigating government leaks.

With the Trump administration’s new tariffs, some companies may be looking for ways to compensate for increased costs of imports. Companies operating in the international supply chain must be aware that any attempts to circumvent heightened duties may draw unwanted attention from the Department of Justice (DOJ) and/or whistleblowers through False Claims Act (FCA) enforcement. A recent complaint the DOJ filed in the Eastern District of California demonstrates how the DOJ and/or whistleblowers can use the FCA to pursue customs fraud.

What’s Happening?

Under the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) “Preventing Access to U.S. Sensitive Personal Data and Government-Related Data by Countries of Concern or Covered Persons” rules (the Rules), allowing access outside the United States to certain types of sensitive personal data involving “countries of concern” may be restricted or prohibited beginning on April 8.  See our previous advisory for more detail.

2025 is already shaping up to be an active year for False Claims Act (FCA) litigation. With the recent announcements of executive orders that may expand the FCA as an enforcement tool, as discussed in a recent Troutman Pepper Locke client alert, everyone is keeping a close eye on what is next. In the past few weeks, the U.S. Supreme Court has gotten in on the FCA action.