Navigating the Road Ahead: Congressional and DOJ Investigations into Waste and Abuse Related to COVID-19 Relief Funds

Investigations and enforcement actions have already begun, and companies and individual recipients of stimulus funds need to take defensive action and position themselves to demonstrate compliance and manage risk – even years after the COVID-19 pandemic ends. 

To use current trends to help forecast your potential risk, it is critical to first understand the type of conduct Congress and DOJ are targeting today.

This panel will touch on these topics and more, including: 

• Criminal securities fraud prosecutions related to the COVID-19 pandemic
• Limitations in the rollout of the SBA Paycheck Protection Program and how to ensure contracts are being awarded to those who are most in need
• Potential areas for most COVID-19 related fraud and waste
• How the lessons learned from TARP investigations will portend possible similarities for COVID-19 relief participants
• How companies can manage enforcement and litigation risk by adopting good compliance practices

Speakers:

• Jim Barnette, Partner in Steptoe's Government Affairs & Public Policy Group, and former General Counsel, US House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce
• Patrick Linehan, Partner in Steptoe's White-Collar and Securities Enforcement practice
• Rep. Jamie Raskin, represents Maryland's 8th Congressional District in the US House of Representatives and serves on the House Select Committee on the Coronavirus Crisis
• Moderator Reem Sadik, Associate in Steptoe's White-Collar and Securities Enforcement practice
• Donald Sherman, Deputy Director, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW); former Senior Counsel on the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee; former Chief Oversight Counsel for Rep. Elijah Cummings, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform
• Justin Weitz, Assistant Chief, Securities and Financial Fraud Unit of the US Department of Justice's Criminal Division, Fraud Section

Related Series - Borrower Beware: Risks Associated with Accessing COVID-19 Relief Funds

• Click here for more information on the on demand webinar. 
• Part I: Risks Associated with Accessing COVID-19 Relief Funds (April 6, 2020)
• Part II: Avoiding False Claims Act Liability Associated With CARES Act Funding (April 9, 2020)
• Part III: CARES Act Loan Certification Obligations Create Pitfalls for the Unwary (April 10, 2020)
• Part IV: Lessons for CARES Act Participants from TARP Prosecutions (April 13, 2020)