DOJ Ends 15-Year-Old Economic Espionage Case—With Prejudice
In a surprising development, on July 13, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice dismissed with prejudice its landmark economic espionage prosecution against Pangang Group Company, Ltd. and its subsidiaries—a Chinese state-owned enterprise accused of stealing DuPont trade secrets for the benefit of the Chinese government. The dismissal came just one week after trial began, bringing to an end one of the longest-running and most consequential prosecutions under the Economic Espionage Act.
Although the case itself is over, its legal legacy remains. Over more than a decade of litigation, the prosecution produced significant rulings on service of process, foreign sovereign immunity, and the treatment of foreign state-owned enterprises under the Economic Espionage Act and the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act. Those decisions, together with amendments to Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 4 prompted by the litigation, will continue to shape future prosecutions.
SDNY Signals Increased Scrutiny of Private Market Valuations
In remarks delivered at the Bloomberg Global Credit Forum on June 3, 2026, Jay Clayton, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York (“SDNY”), signaled increased scrutiny of private-market valuations. While emphasizing the importance of private credit to the U.S. economy, Clayton identified inconsistent asset valuations as a key area of concern and called for greater transparency around firms’ valuation practices. He specifically noted that significant discrepancies in the valuation of the same assets may raise concerns, particularly where valuations affect fee generation.
Clayton further stated that he has directed SDNY prosecutors to examine valuation discrepancies and outlier marks when assessing cases. This focus may represent a shift from the private-credit cases currently pursued by SDNY, which have largely centered on borrower-side fraud, and suggests increased attention on the conduct of lenders, asset managers, and investors.
Our blog post examines what Clayton’s comments may signal about future enforcement priorities, the types of valuation-related conduct likely to draw scrutiny, and practical steps firms can take to strengthen their valuation frameworks.
New Clarity Emerges on DOJ’s Fraud Enforcement Reorganization
In remarks delivered on June 3, 2026, at the American Conference Institute’s Global Anti-Corruption, Ethics & Compliance Conference in New York City, Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva, the head of the U.S. Department of Justice’s (“DOJ”) Criminal Division, provided the clearest public indication to date of how DOJ intends to divide fraud enforcement responsibilities between the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and the newly created National Fraud Enforcement Division (“NFED”).
Under the emerging structure, NFED will focus on government program fraud, i.e., criminal offenses involving public payers and public systems, including taxpayer-funded programs, while the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section will remain focused on private-sector market, consumer, and corporate fraud matters—a traditional strength of the Unit previously known as Market Integrity & Major Frauds, which will remain part of the Criminal Division. Duva further emphasized that the Fraud Section will be focusing on securities and major financial fraud schemes, global fraud, and prediction markets, and is actively looking to further build capacity by hiring talented lawyers.
The remarks largely confirm earlier expectations that DOJ would eventually provide greater clarity regarding the respective roles of the Criminal Division and NFED following NFED’s creation. We examine what Duva’s comments reveal about DOJ’s enforcement priorities, staffing changes, and the implications for future enforcement activity.
New Division Continues Time-Tested Model: DOJ’s National Fraud Enforcement Division Launches West Coast Health Care Fraud Strike Force
In another signal that health care fraud enforcement remains a top priority for DOJ, on April 30, 2026, the newly created National Fraud Enforcement Division (the “Fraud Division”) announced the launch of the West Coast Health Care Fraud Strike Force, a multi-district initiative targeting health care fraud across the District of Arizona, the District of Nevada, and the Northern District of California. This expansion is consistent with the time-tested model of Main Justice-based health care matters that has existed since 2007. Like its predecessor strike forces, the West Coast Strike Force will use dedicated agent and prosecutorial resources in the region to combat schemes identified based on data analytics and traditional law enforcement techniques. This announcement is independently notable because it makes clear that while the Health Care Fraud Unit—rebranded as the Health Care Section of the new Fraud Division—is no longer part of the Criminal Division, it will continue with the same career leadership and approach to enforcement: use of data to expand prosecutorial pipelines, solicitation of whistleblowers, and aggressive pursuit of corporate and individual prosecutions.
U.S. DOJ Shifts Focus in Digital Asset Enforcement
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ or Department) has announced a significant shift in enforcement priorities concerning digital assets. On April 7, 2025, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a memorandum (Memorandum) announcing that the Department is not a “digital assets regulator” and will no longer pursue litigation or enforcement actions that “have the effect of superimposing regulatory frameworks on digital assets.” Instead, the Memorandum directs DOJ to focus on the prosecution of conduct that victimizes investors or uses digital assets in furtherance of crimes such as terrorism, narcotics trafficking, hacking, and human trafficking.
