Crane Company, False Claims Act, Texas 2017

Crane Company has agreed to pay over $4.5 million to the United States to resolve allegations that it violated the False Claims Act by failing to comply with Military Specification (Mil Spec) Mil-V 24624 for certain high performance butterfly valves and requirements for inclusion on the Qualified Products List (QPL).

The valves, supplied by Crane Company, were used in U.S. Navy ships. According to the allegations, Crane Company supplied high performance butterfly valves that included Reinforced Teflon (RTFE) seats and Monel bolting, which had not been approved for use by the Navy.

“Requirements like the Mil Spec and QPL play an important role in protecting the quality of the equipment received by the government, as well as the safety of military personnel,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton of the Civil Division. “Companies that knowingly fail to comply with these requirements will be held accountable.”

The settlement resolves allegations that from May 2011 through September 2017, Crane Company supplied high performance butterfly valves to military ship builders that included Reinforced Teflon (RTFE) seats. From May 2011 to September 2015, Crane Company also supplied high performance butterfly valves that contained Monel bolting.

The civil settlement includes the resolution of claims brought under the qui tam or whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act by Corla Jacobson, a former Crane Company employee. The False Claims Act permits private parties to sue for false claims on behalf of the United States and to share in any recovery.

Ms. Jacobson will receive $855,728 of the False Claims Act settlement, which is the result of a coordinated effort between the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch (Fraud Section) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas with investigative support from the DCIS and the U.S. Navy Criminal Investigation Division.

Senior Trial Counsel Alicia J. Bentley of the Civil Division and Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Bobb of the Southern District of Texas handled the matter. The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

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