Over the last decade, there has been a steady increase in False Claims Act (FCA) and whistleblower, or qui tam, investigations and related litigation. The qui tam provisions of the federal and state FCAs allow private individuals, or whistleblowers, with knowledge of fraud committed against federal or state governments to file suit on their behalf. The rewards for plaintiffs in qui tam cases range from 15% to 30% of the funds recovered from the defendant. Since the seminal 1986 amendments to the federal FCA, instituting the qui tam provisions, federal and states governments across the United States have recovered more than $30 billion in FCA damages. In 2009 and 2010, substantive new amendments to the FCA were passed, providing for increased exposure and expanded theories of liability and creating potential risks for many companies that had not previously needed to address FCA issues. In addition, more than 30 states and municipalities have enacted—and have been aggressively enforcing—their own equivalents to the federal FCA, many of which are broader and more far-reaching than their federal counterpart.
Our attorneys have investigated and defended FCA and qui tam actions throughout the United States, often in industry wide investigations. Members of our team are nationally recognized FCA practitioners and thought leaders who have handled federal and state investigations in more than 36 jurisdictions. Many of our matters are parallel proceedings that involve multiple government prosecuting agencies and multiple defendants at the federal and state levels.
Our clients include companies, boards of directors, officers and directors, and individuals in parallel prosecutions involving simultaneous criminal, civil, and administrative investigations. We are equipped to respond to all of the ancillary aspects of a government investigation, including shareholder suits, suspension and debarment proceedings, and administrative monetary penalty proceedings, and we have defended cases at both the district court and appellate levels. Additionally, we have experience with a wide range of Inspector General offices with regard to investigations and other types of enforcement actions brought by them, including investigations by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Defense, the Department of Justice, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and others. Our background spans industries—including, but not limited to, medical device, healthcare, energy, defense, financial services, and technology—and we have represented clients before multiple organizations, including the following:
- Various U.S. Attorneys' Offices
- Department of Justice
- Department of Defense/TriCare
- Department of Housing and Urban Development
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Office of Personnel Management/Federal Employees Health Benefits
- State Attorneys General
- Medicaid Fraud Control Units (MFCUs)
- Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
- Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)