DOJ Rewrites Justice Manual on FCA Sub-Regulatory Enforcement and Qui Tam Dismissals
Justice Manual revisions announced September 18, 2026 curb FCA enforcement premised on sub-regulatory guidance and streamline dismissal of qui tam actions, reshaping government contract fraud exposure.
On September 18, 2026, the Department of Justice announced two revisions to the Justice Manual that change how the government litigates False Claims Act cases. The first limits DOJ's ability to base FCA enforcement on sub-regulatory guidance rather than statute, regulation, or binding interpretation. The second addresses the handling of dismissal of qui tam actions, altering the government's posture on relator-initiated claims.
Both bear directly on government contractors and their counsel. An FCA theory built on a nonbinding agency statement is a familiar vulnerability in qui tam litigation; a manual provision curtailing DOJ's use of such guidance narrows a recurring settlement and dismissal-leverage risk for defense-side firms. The qui tam dismissal revision may also shift timing considerations for relators weighing intervention in no-fee settlements, and for companies evaluating voluntary disclosure before exposure multiplies.
Practitioners will want the actual manual text before advising clients, since the announcement as reported is a summary and the operative language governs. Watch for early enforcement or dismissal practice applying the revised provisions, and for parallel policy signals from other agencies pursuing FCA-adjacent recovery theories. The reporting here is a law-firm alert, so independently confirm the manual language.