DOJ Memorandum Provides Insight to Corporate Fraud Enforcement Priorities

On October 1, 2026, Colin M. McDonald, Assistant Attorney General in the National Fraud Enforcement Division at the Department of Justice, released guidance outlining new corporate fraud enforcement priorities. The memorandum follows the creation of the Division’s Corporate Enforcement Section earlier this year and the accompanying release of the Department-wide Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy (“CEP”). The memorandum instructs Fraud Division prosecutors to work closely with the Corporate Enforcement Section at all phases of corporate investigations to maximize efficiency and consistency. 

Crucially, the memorandum delineates priority cases, guided by the Justice Manual’s Principles of Federal Prosecution of Business Organizations non-exhaustive list of factors to be considered when deciding how to treat a corporation in a corporate case. The memorandum instructs Fraud Division prosecutors to prioritize the following: 

1. Fraud schemes involving the health care industry, including health care fraud, distribution of controlled substances, and violations of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act;

2. Fraud schemes involving the public trust or financial integrity of Americans and markets related to procurement, government contracts, and other government functions;

3. Fraud schemes involving significant evasion of internal or external revenue; and

4. Fraud schemes involving tariff evasion, importation of goods or services, or forced labor.

As for the relevant factors, Division personnel “must place great weight” on the following to determine whether to bring charges or negotiate a plea agreement or other type of agreement consistent with the CEP:

1. Knowledge of or involvement in fraud scheme by corporate management;

2. Efforts to conceal fraud from government agencies or auditors or otherwise impede or obstruct a government function or oversight;

3. Conduct that furthers the scheme lasting three years or more;

4. Actions that threaten the safety or security of Americans, including military readiness;

5. Conduct that causes substantial financial hardship to a taxpayer funded program or government function;

6. Conduct that affects multiple taxpayer funded programs or government functions;

7. Conduct that affects three federal districts or more;

8. Conduct that results in financial harm to twenty-five or more victims or $25 million or more in loss;

9. Conduct that involves the exfiltration of American dollars to support foreign adversaries; and

10. Conduct that involves immigration offenses.

In addition to highlighting priority cases, the memorandum underscores the Division’s efforts to promote the disclosure of misconduct and generate leads with the National Fraud Detection Center. The memorandum also directs Division leadership to “appropriately incentivize” whistleblowers through policies and programs designed to “uncover criminal conduct, strengthen ongoing investigations, help prevent fraud losses, and enable the Department to effectively respond to both latent and emerging criminal fraud threats.” 

Companies should be aware of increased scrutiny on the types of fraud cases listed in the new memorandum, in addition to the Division’s encouragement of policies and programs to incentivize whistleblower complaints. Companies that do business with, or otherwise receive payment from or submit payment to, the government should be especially vigilant.