1489313 - Hogan Lovells FIS Horizons 2021 update - Flipbook - Page 14
Hogan Lovells
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We have also seen some litigation concerning
competition for government contracts that relate
to government response to COVID-19 and expect
to see more. Moreover, state and local orders that
limit business activities in an effort to control the
spread of COVID-19 have given rise to a massive
wave of insurance litigation, including over 450
actions in federal courts seeking to establish
insurance coverage for loss suffered as a result of
business closures related to COVID-19, as well as
hundreds of other such suits in various state courts.
Authors:
Finally, federal authorities have reported
widespread borrower fraud related to the PPP
process and applications for a separate SBA loan
and grant program, the Economic Injury Disaster
Loan (EIDL) program and its companion grant
program, EIDL Advance. In a 7 October 2020
speech, Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen
announced that the Justice Department has
brought criminal charges against 65 people for
defrauding, or attempting to defraud, the PPP
program of nearly $227 million. Banks and credit
unions, too, have reported skyrocketing levels
of suspected business loan fraud filing 1,922
suspicious activity reports with FinCEN
(the U.S. Department of Treasury Financial
Crimes Enforcement Network) in August 2020;
that is roughly 14 times the monthly average
number of such reports made over the last six
years. The SBA’s inspector general, Hannibal
Ware, warned in July 2020 that “pervasive
fraudulent activity” affected the EIDL. Such
widespread fraud is likely to result in future
enforcement activity as well as related civil claims.
Band 2 for Dispute Resolution
Chambers Global 2021
Marc Gottridge
Partner, New York
T +1 212 909 0643
marc.gottridge@hoganlovells.com
Rebecca H. Umhofer
Knowledge Lawyer, Washington, D.C.
T +1 202 637 6939
rebecca.umhofer@hoganlovells.com
Allison Funk
Senior Associate, New York
T +1 212 918 3065
allison.funk@hoganlovells.com
