Memoranda Containing the United States Attorney's Recommendations for the Compromising or Closing of Claims Beyond His/Her Authority

The compromising of cases or closing of claims that a United States Attorney is not authorized to approve should be referred to the Civil Division official having the requisite approval authority. The referral memorandum should contain a detailed description of the matter, the United States Attorney's recommendation, the agency’s recommendation, where applicable; a description of the source of funds from which the judgment will be paid (e.g., the Judgment Fund or the agency’s budget), an estimate of the settlement value of the case if that value would differ were the defendant a party other than the Government, and a full statement of the reasons why compromise is in the interests of the United States. This requirement is set forth at § 2(b) of Civil Division Directive No. 1-15, published in the Appendix to Subpart Y immediately following 28 C.F.R. § 0.172 .

[updated April 2018]