California attorney Lisa Bloom and her husband have agreed to a settlement about allegations stemming from misuse of COVID-19 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds.
The Bloom Firm, a California law firm, and Lisa Bloom and Braden Pollock, members of the firm’s senior management, have agreed to pay a total of $274,000 to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly providing false information in support of a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan forgiveness application submitted by firm, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a news release Thursday.
Officials said that Bloom is accused of using her law firm to obtain forgiveness of the firm’s first draw PPP loan by falsely certifying that the firm used the PPP loan funds for eligible payroll expenses.
The DOJ found that The Bloom Firm used a portion of its PPP loan to pay several employees who were ineligible to receive the funds or did not work for the firm during the covered period of the loan.
As a part of the settlement, officials said The Bloom Firm will pay $204,200.34, and Bloom and Pollock will each pay $35,384.49.
"PPP loans were intended to provide critical relief to small businesses," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Brian M. Boynton, head of the DOJ’s Civil Division. "The department is committed to pursuing those who misused this taxpayer-funded program."
Congress created the PPP in March 2020, as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, to provide emergency financial support to the millions of Americans suffering economic hardship due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The CARES Act authorized billions of dollars in forgivable loans to small businesses struggling to pay employees and other business expenses.
In December 2020, Congress approved funding for a "second draw" of PPP loan funds that were available to borrowers beginning in January 2021.
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When applying for forgiveness of any PPP loans, officials said borrowers were required to certify the truthfulness and accuracy of all information provided in their applications, including that they spent the PPP loan funds on eligible expenses, such as payroll.
Bloom, who is the daughter of famous attorney Gloria Allred and, like her mother, specializes in representing women in sexual harassment cases, worked for four women who were considering accusing Donald Trump of misconduct. Two went public, and two declined.
