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New Practice Area - False Claims Act Litigation
Spangenberg, Shibley & Liber LLP now brings its over 60 years of courtroom experience to bear in order to help private plaintiffs bring suit under the Federal False Claims Act, sometimes known as "the whistleblower law". These suits, sometimes called qui tam claims, allow private citizens and entities with evidence against those who have wrongly claimed government funds (such as Medicare or defense contractor fraud) to sue the wrongdoer on behalf of the government. The government has the right to intervene and join the action, or the government may decline intervention, in which case the private plaintiff may proceed on his own.
These provisions in the Federal False Claims Act have helped return billions of dollars to the U.S. treasury, and no doubt have deterred much fraud before it occurred. Under the False Claims Act, those who knowingly submit, or cause another person or entity to submit, false claims for payment of government funds are liable for three times the government's damages plus civil penalties.
The qui tam provisions in the False Claims Act provide financial incentives to the whistleblower and afford potent protections against retaliation for their coming forward with information regarding their employer's fraudulent claim to the government. Typically, in order for a FCA suit to be successful a plaintiff must prove that the defendant knowingly submitted a false claim for payment or approval to the government.
In general, the False Claims Act covers any federally funded contract or program, with the exception of tax fraud. This represents a broad array of scenarios involving everything from falsified test results regarding the quality or cost of products or services sold to the government, to billing Medicare for services that were not performed or were unnecessary.
For more information, please call us at 216.696.3232 or email ssl@spanglaw.com.
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