January 6, 2025 — A federal judge has dismissed a 2021 lawsuit against Cooke Inc. that claimed it violated U.S. law when it acquired Omega Protein in 2017.
The lawsuit, filed by relators W. Benson Chiles and Chris Manthey on behalf of the U.S. government, was first unsealed in May 2024 after the U.S. Department of Justice declined to intervene. In the lawsuit, considered a “qui tam” action where a private citizen files on behalf of the U.S. government, Chiles and Manthey are considered “relators,” or private individuals who bring forth a lawsuit, while the U.S. government is the plaintiff.