Historic settlement for over 1,300 survivors of clergy and adult abuse within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, marking a pivotal moment for justice.
June 3, 2013
June 3, 2013 — The Federal False Claims Act makes government contractors liable when they submit false claims for reimbursement to the federal government. The cost for violators is steep — as much as $11,000 per false claim along with three times the government’s actual loss. The False Claims Act is so effective because of brave insider informants who choose to collaborate with the Justice Department in fighting fraudulent activity. The whistleblower language in the Act authorizes “relators” to initiate lawsuits against companies engaged in fraud against the government. Should the government recover anything as a result of the suit, the informant may receive up to 30 percent of that amount, depending on a variety of factors.
In April, the Minnesota Legislature amended the Minnesota False Claims Act (Minn. Stat. § 15C.01, et seq.) to broaden its scope and offer greater incentives for qui tam lawsuits by whistleblowers. The new statute goes into effect in August 2013, Lexology reports.
The new statute includes the following changes:
Minnesota will now be eligible to receive a larger share of any recovery in broader Medicaid fraud actions where the recovery is split among the federal government and the 50 states. The federal Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) gave states an incentive to enact or beef up state false claims legislation by awarding the states an added ten percent recovery in Medicaid cases, so long as they have a state false claims act with provisions at least as broad as the federal statute and as favorable to private qui tam suits by whistleblowers.
Like Minnesota, many states have their own False Claims Act statutes that parallel the provisions of the federal Act. Private False Claims Act lawsuits are frequently filed by insider employees who are outraged by schemes to defraud the federal or state governments. These courageous citizens have rights to protect them under the False Claims Act. The qui tam lawyers at Waters & Kraus have experience in safeguarding tipsters’ interests. Contact us by email or phone our whistleblower attorneys across the country at 855.784.0268 to learn more about how we can assist you.
Our Results
Historic settlement for over 1,300 survivors of clergy and adult abuse within the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, marking a pivotal moment for justice.
A Philadelphia jury awarded a record verdict against ExxonMobil for failing to warn about cancer risks due to benzene in its petroleum products.
Confidential settlement for the wife of a Rhode Island man who died of mesothelioma cancer after exposure to window glazing compound contaminated with asbestos.