What Every SBA Lender Must Know About the Federal False Claims Act

What Every SBA Lender Must Know About the Federal False Claims Act
How SBA Lenders Can Become Liable Under the Federal False Claims Act

Thursday April 4, 2013
2:00 p.m. to 3:15 p.m. Eastern
Price: $289.00
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Late in January, a major SBA lender agreed to pay the United States federal government $7.1 million for failing to engage in prudent underwriting of 64 SBA 7(a) loans.

That lender was ensnared by a significant 2010 revision of the federal government’s False Claims Act that broadened the law.

Including the definition of fraud against the S.B.A.

This is what the Department of Justice said;

In 2005, under the Preferred Lender Program, the lender issued 64 SBA-guaranteed loans for the purchase of 98 Uni-Marts stores located primarily in the mid-Atlantic region. The United States alleges that in connection with these loans, the lender relied upon unaudited financial statements without further verifying whether the information contained in the financial statements was accurate. Of the 64 SBA-guaranteed loans issued by the lender, 36 have defaulted, triggering SBA’s obligations to pay the lender 75 percent of the balance of the defaulted loans. In May 2008, Uni-Marts filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

“Banks that are SBA preferred lenders have a duty to prudently guard the public funds they commit to borrowers,” said Stuart F. Delery, Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division of the Department of Justice. “The government will pursue vigorously lenders that fail to adequately safeguard public funds due to deficient lending standards.”

We won’t be discussing the particulars of the settlement, but this webinar provides an overview of the FCA, its purpose, its goals, its enforcement, its penalties, and how SBA lenders can become liable under this statute.

You will learn:

  • Overview, history and purpose of the FCA
  • Statutory Provisions
    • Criminal
    • Civil
    • Qui Tam/whistleblower
  • The elements of a civil violation of the FCA
    • What constitutes a claim
  • Penalties
    • Fine
    • Treble damages
    • Legal fees
    • Suspension/Debarment from government programs
  • Safe harbors
  • Investigations
  • Prosecutions
    • Criminal False claims
    • Civil False claims
    • Administrative actions
  • Whistleblower litigation
  • SBA false claims
    • Certifications made during the loan application and indemnification application process
    • The Program Fraud Civil Remedies Act, 31 U.S.C. §3802
  • Recent FCA actions brought by the SBA

This webinar is rated “INTERMEDIATE” for all attendees.

Coleman’s Webinar level of instruction guide:

ELEMENTARY — The webinar assumes the audience has no experience in the topic.
BASIC — The webinar is for small business lenders who have some experience in the topic. The webinar is designed as the Topical 101 course. This is the appropriate level of instruction for managers who oversee the function.
INTERMEDIATE — The webinar solves an unique problem for the small business lending professional. A strong working knowledge of the subject matter is recommended.
EXPERT — The webinar discusses detailed, technical and advanced topics for the well-seasoned professional. A strong working knowledge of the subject matter is a must.

Who should attend:

SBA Loan Department Manager
C-Suite Level Executives
CDC Executive Directors

Certificates of Participation

All Coleman Webinar attendees will receive a certificate of participation. This documents your continuing education history for your regulators. Also, this documents the answer for SBA’s Review question of continuing staff education.

We will automatically forward a certificate of participation for those who are registered to attend the webinar via Go-to-Webinar.

If you have purchased the unlimited site license and would like certificates for all who attend, please forward their names and email addresses to jeanne@colemanreport.com. She will email the certificates
to you.

Join Coleman’s Expert SBA Instructor:

Ethan Smith
Partner
Starfield & Smith, P.C.
Ethan focuses his practice in business law, with an emphasis on commercial lending, government guaranteed lending, mergers and acquisitions, real estate, contracts, commercial and corporate law. He is a closing attorney for various lenders nationwide, including PNC Bank, Live Oak Bank, Wells Fargo/Wachovia Bank, Beneficial Bank, US Bank, 44 Business Capital, Eagle National Bank, Susquehanna Bank and Univest National Bank and Trust Co. Ethan is also a designated closing counsel for several Certified Development Companies that operate in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. In addition to representing commercial lenders, Ethan represents and counsels a number of small businesses in a variety of contexts, including mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, and contract and real estate matters.

Norman Greenspan
Partner
Starfield & Smith
Norman Greenspan concentrates his practice in complex commercial and corporate litigation matters, and white collar criminal defense. Before joining Starfield & Smith, Norman was an equity partner in the Philadelphia office of a national law firm. During his 34 years with his prior firm, Norman served as chairman of the litigation department and was a member of the firm’s executive committee. He successfully represented many high profile clients in civil, criminal and administrative litigation matters and has tried over 60 cases to judgment. He serves a wide range of clients in areas such as: contracts; creditor’s rights; false claims act; government investigations; internal corporate investigations; financial services; securities; corporate governance; intellectual property; antitrust; real estate; restrictive covenants; RICO; false claims act and qui tam litigation; class actions; grand jury and government investigations involving antitrust, securities, public corruption, bank fraud, fcpa, tax, money laundering, medicare/medicaid fraud, environmental, government contracts, tax evasion, and business fraud.

Bob Coleman
Editor
Coleman Report
Bob Coleman is the Author of “Money Money Everywhere and Not a Drop for Main Street“. Coleman is the Editor of the Coleman Report, a trade newsletter for small business bankers. He is the nationally recognized expert on small business banking. He has appeared on Fox Business News and CNN and has been quoted by most major financial media outlets including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and Bloomberg. He has spoken at numerous small business banking events across the United States, including international engagements. Coleman has a B.A. in Medieval History from the University of California Santa Barbara and a M.B.A. in Real Estate Finance from the University of Southern California. Bob is scheduled to be the Keynote Speaker at the following events.

Choice Hotels Owners Council
Phoenix, AZ
April 2, 2013

SBA/USDA Lending & Alternative Investments Seminar
Hosted by Banes Capital
Beverly Wilshire Hotel
Beverly Hills, CA
April 16, 2013

Great Lakes SBA
Detroit, MI
August 1, 2013

About Coleman Webinars

Coleman is the largest producer of small business banking webinars in the country, all taught by the best experts in our industry.

Not only our instructors chosen with care, they are excellent teachers of their craft.

Coleman’s Webinars provide 75 minutes of highly specialized information, access to industry experts, live Q&A, and step-by-step “how-to’s” on a variety of topics relevant to today’s small business banker.

Two monthly SBA topical webinars are conducted by John Dunn and Lisa Lerner, our national professional SBA instructors.

Dunn and Lerner’s presentations solve pressing problems facing today’s SBA lending professionals.

Every month, the author of the bestselling “The SBA Loan Book” and the just released book, “Get Financing Now,” Charles Greene presents a program on a topical small business lending underwriting subject.

We rotate our SBA loan liquidation and servicing webinars with three of the finest experts in the country — Ethan Smith of SBA lender boutique law firm Starfield and Smith, SBA lender attorney Mitch Fogel, and Kerri Agee, of banc-serv, the president of the largest SBA loan service provider in the country.

Why a Webinar?

It’s very cost effective. No airfare, no hotels. Just cram as many people as you wish into your conference room and turn on the computer. You have two options to listen to the program–phone, or through your computer speakers. You are only charged for the connection.

You can choose to have any many connections nationwide as you wish when you purchase unlimited access for only $100.

A great benefit of the program is that you have the ability to ask questions directly of the panelists. Or, you may simply email Coleman during the program and he will air your question. All of our webinars are recorded. Buyers of the unlimited site license option will receive a DVD recording of the event to share with anyone you wish. A transcript of the program is also provided to purchasers of the unlimited site license.

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The Fine Print

1) The single user registration fee of $289 is based on location not attendance. You may have as many people in one location attend. You many distribute the materials to anybody in your company.
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What Every SBA Lender Must Know About the Federal False Claims A


Bob Coleman
Publisher
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La Cañada, CA 91012
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