What is a Qui Tam Whistleblower Lawsuit?

Qui tam refers to a specific type of legal action that allows any person to bring a lawsuit initially in the place of the government under the False Claims Act, on behalf of themselves and the government, against an entity which has defrauded the government. The law allows whistleblowers with specific, credible allegations of fraud against the government to file a case against the entity or entities that have defrauded either or both the federal and state governments.

If it is proven that the government has been victimized, a qui tam whistleblower is entitled to a significant percentage of the monetary penalty which can total several million dollars. This penalty is imposed by the court and is legally insulated from retaliation by the defendant, a protection that is especially valuable if the whistleblower has worked for the defendant.

WHAT DOES “QUI TAM” MEAN?

“Qui tam” is short for the Latin phrase “qui tam pro domino rege quam pro se ipso in hac parte sequitur,” meaning “He who sues on behalf of our Lord the King and on his own behalf,” and dates as far back as the early Middle Ages as a means for an individual to act on behalf of a governing body in order to protect its interests from wrongdoers. The False Claims Act is the most important modern application of the qui tam mechanism, allowing private citizens to fight against government fraud which steals billions of taxpayer dollars each year.

WHO CAN BECOME A QUI TAM WHISTLEBLOWER?

The False Claims Act’s qui tam provisions allow whistleblowers to act in a unique and powerful manner to report fraud and help the government recover funds. Anyone can be a qui tam whistleblower, provided they have new information about fraud committed against the government.

Qui tam whistleblowers, or “relators,” must first retain the services of a seasoned whistleblower attorney, of which Hagens Berman has several, co-led by head of whistleblower practice, Shayne Stevenson, and the firm’s managing partner, Steve Berman. After an attorney takes a qui tam case brought by a whistleblower, it is filed under seal, protecting the whistleblower’s identity and allowing the government to quietly investigate the potential defendant.

Ultimately, the government can either take over the whistleblower’s case or, if it declines to do so, the whistleblower can continue with the litigation on their own. Either way, the qui tam whistleblower remains eligible for a monetary reward should a successful legal action ensue.

Historically, qui tam laws have allowed whistleblowers who assist in the prosecution of a case to receive all or part of any penalty imposed by the court, and the laws continue to provide whistleblowers with an opportunity to report fraud and protect their safety. According to Department of Justice statistics, most False Claims Act actions are filed under the False Claims Act’s qui tam provisions. If the government prevails in the action, the whistleblower receives up to 30 percent of the recovery.

Find out more about the False Claims Act »

TYPES OF QUI TAM FRAUD

It was defense contractor fraud that prompted Congress to pass the original False Claims Act law during the Civil War and to strengthen the False Claims Act in 1986, and it remains a critical area of enforcement today, allowing for qui tam actions from whistleblowers worldwide. Some other examples of False Claims Act fraud that qui tam whistleblowers play a vital role in exposing are health care fraud, information technology fraud, construction fraud and financial fraud, all areas where Hagens Berman’s team of whistleblower attorneys has achieved considerable success, assisted by the firm’s vast experience in complex fraud litigation, including decades of experience with accounting and securities fraud.

The most common type of fraud under the False Claims Act qui tam provisions is health care fraud, which in recent years, has been by far the most active area of False Claims Act enforcement. Of the $3 billion in penalties recovered by the government in fiscal year 2019, $2.6 billion came from cases related to health care. Types of health care fraud include pharmaceutical fraud, inflated medical bills, unnecessary medical procedures, kickbacks paid to health providers in exchange for unfair promotion of a prescription drug, and off-label promotion of drugs for uses for which they are not approved.

Learn more about the various types of False Claims Act Fraud under qui tam laws »

HAGENS BERMAN’S SUCCESSFUL REPRESENTATION OF QUI TAM WHISTLEBLOWERS

Hagens Berman’s team of whistleblower attorneys has successfully represented several qui tam whistleblowers. Unlike smaller whistleblower practices, Hagens Berman has the resources to litigate claims against some of the world’s biggest corporations, and the firm’s track record includes some of the largest qui tam settlements in legal history.

Among many successes, Hagens Berman represented the whistleblower who blew the whistle on an appraisal-fixing scheme perpetrated by his employer, LandSafe, Inc., and Bank of America that defied federal regulations. The investigation concluded in a $1 billion settlement between Bank of America and the U.S. Department of Justice, the second-largest in government history. Both that whistleblower and another whistleblower who brought a mortgage-servicing fraud claim against Bank of America were represented by Hagens Berman and both were rewarded for their efforts.

Hagens Berman has also represented qui tam whistleblower cases against medical-industry powerhouses like Pfizer, Amgen and Medtronic. And when the government declined to pursue a complex Medicare-fraud case exposed by health care finance expert Anthony Kite, Hagens Berman litigated the action privately, securing a multimillion-dollar award for Kite.

HAGENS BERMAN REPRESENTS QUI TAM WHISTLEBLOWERS

Hagens Berman litigates whistleblower cases under qui tam laws, helping those who choose to report fraud and false claims against the government. We build robust, impactful cases for whistleblowers and get real results, regardless of governmental intervention.

The firm is equipped to successfully litigate cases in these areas, as it has significant experience in related areas of the law. For instance, unlike some smaller qui tam firms who lack the resources to take on large corporations, Hagens Berman’s size and expertise enable it to engage even the biggest companies in sustained litigation, sometimes lasting years.

HOW TO BECOME A QUI TAM WHISTLEBLOWER

If you know of a False Claims Act violation or would like to discuss becoming a qui tam whistleblower and review your legal rights and protections, contact Hagens Berman’s whistleblower team at [email protected] or by filling out the secure form on this page.