Reading Room Document

Payment of Awards in Excess of$250,000 from the Department ofJustice Assets Forfeiture Fund

This opinion examines whether the Department of Justice can grant award payments larger than $250,000 for information and assistance leading to a civil or criminal forfeiture. Ultimately, the opinion concludes that, though there is no definitive interpretation of the relevant statute, it is clear that the terms "information" and "assistance" have distinct meanings, up to the interpretation of the Attorney General. Thus, while awards for information leading to a forfeiture may not exceed $250,000, the Attorney General may pay awards larger than $250,000 for assistance leading to a forfeiture. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at https://justice.gov/olc/page/file/936191/download.

October 18, 2000