U.S. ex rel. Relator LLC v. Yosef Y. Manela et al.

Case summary

Yosef Y. Manela, a Los Angeles-based businessman, owns and operates an accounting firm, a law firm and a consulting company. The United States alleged that Manela and his companies received six first- and second-draw PPP loans based on duplicative payroll expenses for multiple businesses and/or on behalf of non-existent employees. The Justice Department noted that the claims settled are allegations only, with no determination of liability.¹

According to the government, Manela's companies made capital distributions of business profits to his family members, then characterized those distributions as wages in the PPP loan applications and again in the forgiveness applications that followed.¹

Manela and his companies paid $802,341.40 to resolve the False Claims Act allegations. They also agreed to repay the lender for all outstanding PPP loans, relieving the SBA of liability to the lender for the federal guaranty of approximately $728,000.¹

The settlement also resolves a qui tam case, U.S. ex rel. Relator LLC v. Yosef Y. Manela et al., No. 2:22-cv-04781-MWF-ASx in the Central District of California, brought by Relator LLC, a company formed by California attorneys Anoush Hakimi and Peter Shahriari. Relator LLC will receive approximately $80,000 as its share.¹

Notes

1. U.S. Department of Justice, "California Businessman and His Companies Resolve False Claims Act Allegations Relating to Improper Paycheck Protection Program Loans" (original), September 12, 2024. ↩₁ ↩₂ ↩₃ ↩₄

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