In September, 2020, the DOJ announced a settlement with Linde GmbH and its U.S. subsidiary Linde Engineering North America LLC (LENA) (together, “Linde”) have agreed to pay the United States more than $22.2 million to resolve allegations that Linde violated the False Claims Act by knowingly making false statements on customs declarations to avoid paying duties owed on the companies’ imports.
Kathryn M. Schilling was local counsel on this case, which is one of the largest settlements in a whistleblower case alleging avoidance of customs duties.
Linde notified the government in 2016 that it had underpaid customs duties, but delayed telling the government how much it owed until it paid $13 million in August 2017. After the government informed Linde that it was investigating the underpayments – prompted by Johnson’s qui tam lawsuit, which at the time was under seal so Linde was unaware of it – Linde submitted another $2 million in 2019.
Steve Hasagawa, lead counsel on the case, stated: “Our client let the government know what Linde truly owed.” “It’s usually only company insiders who know about specific instances of customs fraud, which is why whistleblowers are crucial for enforcement.”
The whistleblower received a reward of $3.78 million for her information and the assistance she and her lawyers provided to the government.