On October 27, a significant legal advancement occurred when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied a petition for a panel rehearing en banc regarding a False Claims Act (FCA) suit dismissed in 2020. Notably, the whistleblower lawsuit was initially filed in 2019, with the aim of highlighting alleged breaches of U.S.’s sanctions on Iran.
Detailed in the suit was an accusation asserting that foreign currency was exchanged covertly for U.S. dollars for the benefit of Iranian entities and their associated terrorist groups, as pointed out in information provided by Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP.
The Second Circuit Court’s denial of the petition for a hearing solidifies the existing dismissal and continues to have profound implications for the landscape of future whistleblower suits, as well as laws regarding sanctions on Iran.
Legal professionals should be conscious of this development as it could prove impactful for corporations not only navigating the sanctions in place against Iran but also those considering the potential risks and repercussions associated with whistleblower lawsuits.