Shortly after the Trump administration announced its tariff program, warning flags were raised about the possibility of the False Claims Act being used against companies alleged to have engaged in efforts to evade applicable tariffs. Those warnings proved to be prescient, as the intro to this Sullivan & Cromwell memo explains:

On July 15, 2025, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina filed a qui tam intervenor complaint under the False Claims Act in United States ex rel. Joyce v. Global Office Furniture, LLC, et al., alleging that a South Carolina office furniture company, Global Office Furniture, submitted false invoices to Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”), evading at least $2 million in tariffs on imported goods.

The company allegedly engaged in a so-called “double-invoicing scheme,” whereby an importer creates two separate invoices—one reflecting the accurate price that is used to collect payment from the purchaser, and one with a falsely reduced price that is submitted to CBP and used to calculate customs duties. The company’s former office manager filed a qui tam whistleblower complaint under seal on March 30, 2020, leading to both a civil and criminal investigation later that year.

Although the conduct alleged in the complaint predates “Liberation Day” by several years, S&C’s memo says that the complaint confirms that the Trump administration’s focus on tariff and trade issues is reflected in DOJ civil and criminal enforcement priorities, and that companies with international supply chains need to review and consider updating their compliance programs to ensure that customs and tariff-related issues are appropriately addressed.

– John Jenkins