Whistleblowers were given that name because they are essentially “blowing the whistle,” or alerting government officials of fraud committed against the government. Both the federal False Claims Act and the California False Claims Act provide great protection to whistleblowers and often, even compensation for bringing the fraud to light. Many…
Nearly every lawsuit or legal action has a statute of limitations. A statute of limitations is the time limit within which the plaintiff, or person filing the lawsuit, can file a claim. Personal injury lawsuits in California have a statute of limitations of two years. Even criminal cases have a…
People make mistakes in the course of their job every day. When those ‘mistakes’ are intentionally made by a physician or health care billing administrator, though, they are considered fraud. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has spent the last few years cracking down on health care fraud, with the…
Those who are under investigation for health care fraud may face years in federal prison if they are found guilty, or they ay face civil charges that result in much less severe penalties. It is up to the discretion of the federal prosecutor to determine if the case will be…
The partial shutdown of the federal government has been going on for almost five weeks as of the date of this article. Many government programs have been negatively impacted. This is especially pertinent regarding whistleblower (also known as qui tam) actions since the federal government is potentially involved in so…
Many people are familiar with whistleblower lawsuits (often called qui tam actions) brought under the federal False Claims Act (31 USC §3729 et seq.) but many states have their own version of the law, as well. California has its own version and was one of the first states to promulgate…
Recently, the Supreme Court requested that the Department of Justice (DOJ) file a brief regarding a qui tam or whistleblower lawsuit brought under the False Claims Act (FCA) as regards a clarification of what, in fact, constitutes a “material” misrepresentation under the law. The response from the DOJ is controversial,…
Federal law allows for whistleblowers to file lawsuits against individuals or companies that are defrauding the government. A lawsuit of this nature is called a whistleblower or a qui tam lawsuit. These lawsuits are often complex legal matters and specific steps must be taken to help ensure their success. What…
On December 21, 2018, the Department of Justice released its statistics for Fiscal Year 2018 for actions taken under the Federal False Claims Act. The news release listed several notable cases and provided daunting statistics regarding the scope of fraud committed against the government in our country. Federal False Claims…
The Occupational Safety and Health Act was passed in 1970 and created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to protect employees from dangerous working conditions and to standardize workplace safety. Over the years, it has been amended many times and now includes provisions that protect employees from retaliation from…