Should I File a Whistleblower Lawsuit?

South Carolina Qui Tam Attorneys

When deciding if a potential False Claims Act  Qui Tam(FCA) case is meritorious, a potential whistleblower should consider the following:

The whistleblower should have actual knowledge of the fraud and evidence to support it.

In addition to the whistleblowers personal knowledge, evidence is also necessary in most cases. The evidence of the fraud has to be specific, identifying the “who, what, when and where” of the fraud. Assertions of false claims usually require documentation and any evidence that can be gathered will be valuable when presenting your case to the government.

The fraud committed on the government cannot be tax fraud.

Tax fraud is specifically exempt from prosecution under the False Claims Act.

You must have direct and independent knowledge; publicly disclosed information is insufficient

The whistleblower’s evidence of the fraud cannot come from a publicly disclosed source such as a newspaper, TV, magazine, radio, court record, administrative hearing, etc., unless the relator meets the “original source” test – the relator had “direct and independent knowledge” of the information on which the allegations were based and the relator “voluntarily provided the information to the government” prior to filing the action.

Federal and/or State Money Must be Involved

Federal money must be involved, or, in a state with a state False Claims Acts, state money must be involved. If you are unsure whether your state has a False Claims Act, contact us for a .

The fraud cannot involve a state defrauding the Federal government, though it can involve a County or City defrauding the Federal government.

The company or entity complained about must have known what it was doing

The company or entity must have submitted False Claims to the government knowingly. However, deliberate indifference to the truth of a claim, or acting with reckless disregard of the truth, counts as “knowing.”

Generally, the case needs to be filed within six years of the violation.

It must be a false claim. Mere mismanagement or Waste by a Government Contractor is Insufficient

Mere mismanagement or waste by a government contractor is not covered by the False Claims Act. Also, mismanagement or waste by the government is not subject to the False Claims Act. Only those who have made false claims to the government are subject to prosecution under the FCA.

Expect problems if you are a government employee filing against your own agency.

While Government employees are not specifically barred from filing qui tam lawsuits against their own agencies, the Justice Department usually opposes suits brought by this type of whistleblower. Such whistleblowers can expect to meet more resistance than would otherwise be the case.

If you have personally knowledge of a false claim that was knowingly submitted to the government, contact the Strom Law Firm, LLC today for a free consultation with one of our Qui Tam lawyers to discuss the facts of your situation and whether filing a Qui Tam action may be appropriate.