The Whistleblowing Details: The False Claims Act in Practice

"Now as through this world I ramble
I see lots of funny men,
Some will rob you with a six-gun,
And some with a fountain pen."
- Woody Guthrie¹ 

The civil False Claims Act richly deserves its reputation as the primary workhorse in the fight against fraud in all federal programs. The act takes on the world's second oldest profession “ thievery. Its special weapon is its reward provision, known as "qui tam,"² which allows whistleblowers to file suit on the government's behalf. By permitting this it combines the traditional federal role in law enforcement with an incentive structure similar to private litigation. The act's triple damages and massive penalties make defendants pay dearly for their wrongdoing.

This article will: (1) analyze the liability portion of the act, (2) identify the five most common types of prosecuted cases and give several examples of how the act assists the government in recovering money taken fraudulently by its contractors, (3) analyze the progress and success of the "qui tam" whistleblower provisions since the Act's 1986 amendments, and (4) identify the various states that have adopted similar statutes.

The Act's Liability Provision

The Act prohibits seven different types of conduct, all of which involve submission of false claims to the government.