Qui Tam: The False Claims Act and Related
Federal Statutes
Charles Doyle
Senior Specialist in American Public Law
August 6, 2009
Congressional Research Service
7-5700
www.crs.gov
R40785
CRS Report for Congress
P
repared for Members and Committees of Congress
Qui Tam: The False Claims Act and Related Federal Statutes
Summary
Qui tam enlists the public in the recovery of civil penalties and forfeitures. It rewards with a
portion of the recovered proceeds those who sue in the government’s name. A creature of
antiquity, once common, today qui tam lives on in federal law only in the False Claims Act and in
two minor examples found in patent and Indian protection laws.
The False Claims Act, expanded by the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009, P.L. 111-
21 (S. 386), 123 Stat. 1617 (2009), now proscribes: (1) presenting a false claim; (2) making or
using a false record or statement material to a false claim; (3) possessing property or money of
the U.S. and delivering less than all of it; (4) delivering a certified receipt with intent to defraud
the U.S.; (5) buying public property from a federal officer or employee, who may not lawfully
sell it; (6) using a false record or statement material to an obligation to pay or transmit money or
property to the U.S., or concealing or improperly avoiding or decreasing an obligation to pay or
transmit money or property to the U.S.; (7) conspiring to commit any such offense. Additional
liability may also flow from any retaliatory action taken against whistleblowers under the False
Claims Act. Offenders may be sued for triple damages, costs, expenses, and attorneys fees in a
civil action brought either by the United States or by a relator (whistleblower or other private
party) in the name of the United States.
If the government initiates the suit, others may not join. If the government has not brought suit, a
relator may do so, but must give the government notice and afford it 60 days to decide whether to
take over the litigation. If the government declines to intervene, a prevailing relator’s share of any
recovery is capped at 30%; if the government intervenes, the caps are lower and depend upon the
circumstances. Relators in patent and Indian protection qui tam cases are entitled to half of the
recovery.
Federal qui tam statutes have survived two types of constitutional challenges—those based on
defendants’ rights in criminal cases and those based on the doctrine of separation of powers. The
courts have found the rights required in criminal cases inapplicable, because qui tam actions are
civil matters. They have generally rejected standing arguments, because relators stand in the
shoes of the United States in whose name qui tam actions are brought. They have rejected
appointments clause arguments, because relators hold no appointed office. They have rejected
take care clause arguments, because the residue of governmental control over qui tam actions is
considered constitutionally sufficient.
This report is available in an abridged version, as CRS Report R40786, Qui Tam: An Abbreviated
Look at the False Claims Act and Related Federal Statutes, by Charles Doyle, stripped of the
footnotes, quotations, appendix, and most of the citations found here.
Congressional Research Service
Qui Tam: The False Claims Act and Related Federal Statutes
Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1
Background ................................................................................................................................ 2
Qui Tam in England .............................................................................................................. 2
Early American Experience ................................................................................................... 3
Contemporary Federal Qui Tam Statutes ..................................................................................... 4
False Claims Act ......................................................................................................................... 5
Civil War Origins .................................................................................................................. 5
1943 Amendments ................................................................................................................ 6
1986 Amendments ................................................................................................................ 7
2009 Amendments ................................................................................................................ 8
Current State of the Law ....................................................................................................... 9
Persons Who May Be Liable ................................................................................................. 9
Who May Bring an Action .................................................................................................... 9
Basis for Liability ............................................................................................................... 10
Presentation of a false or fraudulent claim (31 U.S.C. 3279(a)(1)(A)) ............................ 11
Use of false records or statements material to a false or fraudulent claim (31
U.S.C. 3279(a)(1)(B)) ................................................................................................ 12
Conspiracy to commit liability triggering misconduct (31 U.S.C. 3279(a)(1)(C))........... 12
Short-changing the government on the transfer of funds or other property (31
U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(D)) ................................................................................................ 13
Issuing a false government receipt (31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(E)) ........................................ 13
Unlawful purchase of government property (31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(F)) .......................... 14
Reverse false claims (31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(G))............................................................. 14
Retaliatory actions (31 U.S.C. 3730(h))......................................................................... 16
Penalties and Awards........................................................................................................... 17
Procedure............................................................................................................................ 18
Patent Act (35 U.S.C. 292) ........................................................................................................ 20
Indian Protection (25 U.S.C. 201) ............................................................................................. 21
Constitutional Concerns ............................................................................................................ 23
Double Jeopardy ................................................................................................................. 23
Excessive Fines................................................................................................................... 24
Due Process ........................................................................................................................ 25
Separation of Powers .......................................................................................................... 26
Standing........................................................................................................................ 28
Appointments clause ..................................................................................................... 29
Take care ...................................................................................................................... 31
False Claims Act (Text)....................................................................................................... 33
False Claims Act (Text)................................................................................................. 33
Appendixes
Appendix. ................................................................................................................................. 33
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Qui Tam: The False Claims Act and Related Federal Statutes
Contacts
Author Contact Information ...................................................................................................... 45
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Qui Tam: The False Claims Act and Related Federal Statutes
Introduction
Qui tam is the process whereby an individual sues or prosecutes in the name of the government
and shares in the proceeds of any successful litigation or settlement. Although frequently
punitive, it is generally a civil procedure. Unlike antitrust, RICO, and other federal punitive
damage, private attorney general provisions,1 the individual need not have been a victim of the
misconduct giving rise to the litigation. The name qui tam is the shortened version of an oft
abbreviated Latin phrase which roughly translates to “he who prosecutes for himself as well as
for the King.”2 Qui tam comes to us from before the dawn of the common law. Reviled at various
times throughout the ages as a breeding ground for “viperous vermin”3 and parasites,4 legislative
bodies have authorized it when they consider the enforcement of some law beyond the unaided
capacity or interest of authorized law enforcement officials.5 Best known of the contemporary
members of the line is the federal False Claims Act (31 U.S.C. 3729-3733), recently amended in
the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009, P.L. 111-21, 123 Stat. 1617 (2009). Since
1986, False Claims Act recoveries have totaled an amount in excess of $20 billion.6
This is a brief discussion of the constitutional questions raised by qui tam provisions; of the
history of such provisions; and of the three existing, active federal qui tam statutes—the False
Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. 3729-3733; the false marking patent statute, 35 U.S.C. 292; and the Indian
protection provisions of 25 U.S.C. 201.
1 15 U.S.C. 15 (antitrust), 18 U.S.C. 1964 (racketeer influenced and corrupt organizations (RICO)); examples of other
punitive damage provisions include 15 U.S.C. 1679g (consumer credit protection), 18 U.S.C. 2710 (wrongful
disclosure of video tape rental or sales records), 18 U.S.C. 2520 (communications privacy), 18 U.S.C. 2724 (state
motor vehicle record privacy), 47 U.S.C. 551 (cable subscriber privacy). Other federal private attorney general statutes
permit suit by those who are not victims. These allow the award of attorney’s fees, but unlike qui tam provisions they
do not call for the private plaintiff to share any damage or penalty award with the government, e.g., 33 U.S.C. 1365
(water pollution control), 42 U.S.C. 4911 (noise control).
2 Blackstone explained that the phrase “qui tam” comes from a longer one which he abbreviated to “qui tam pro
domino rege, &c, quam pro seipso in hac parte sequitur, ” III BLACKSTONE, COMMENTARIES ON THE LAWS OF ENGLAND
160 (1768)(transliteration supplied). Taking the “&c” into account, the phrase might read in full, “he who brings this
following matter for my Lord the King and who as well who brings this following matter for himself.” In any event,
later courts and commentators usually drop at least the “&c” from Blackstone’s quote, see e.g., Vermont Agency of
Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S. 768 n.1 (2000)(“qui tam pro domino rege quam pro seipso
in hac parte sequitur”); Beck, The False Claims Act and the English Eradication of Qui Tam Legislation, 78 NORTH
CAROLINA LAW REVIEW 539, 541 n. 3 (2000)(same); The History and Development of Qui Tam, 1972 WASHINGTON
UNIVERSITY LAW QUARTERLY 81, 83 (“Qui tam is the accepted abbreviation of the phrase ‘qui tam pro domino rege
quam pro seipso’”).
3 COKE, THE THIRD PART OF THE INSTITUTES OF THE LAWS OF ENGLAND 194 (1628).
4 S. Rept. No. 77-1708, at 2 (1942), and H. Rept. No. 78-263 at 2 (1943), each quoting from a letter by Attorney
General Biddle.
5 E.g., 132 Cong. Rec. 20535 (1986)(remarks of Sen. Grassley urging enactment of an anti-fraud qui tam
measure)(“There is no question that the current state of affairs begs for reform. Fraud allegations are climbing at a
steady rate while the Justice Department’s own economic crime council last year terms the level of enforcement in
defense procurement fraud inadequate”).
6 The False Claims Act Correction Act (S. 2041): Strengthening the Government’s Most Effective Tool Against Fraud
for the 21st Century: Hearing Before the Senate Comm. on the Judiciary, 110th Cong., 2d Sess. 1 (2008)(statement of
Sen. Leahy).
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Background
Qui Tam in England
The earliest cited example of a qui tam provision is the 695 declaration of King Wihtred of Kent,
which stated that “If a freeman works during the forbidden time [i.e., the Sabbath], he shall forfeit
his healsfang, and the man who informs against him shall have half the fine, and [the profits
arising] from the labour.”7 By the fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth century, qui tam statutes had
become a common feature of English law.8 They brought with them, however, unintended
consequences. They gave rise to a class of bounty hunters who unscrupulously exploited
weaknesses in the system. “Old statutes which had been forgotten were unearthed and used as
means to gratify ill-will. Litigation was stirred up simply in order that the informer might
compound [i.e., settle] for a sum of money. Threats to sue were easy means of levying
blackmail.”9 Coke in his Third Part of the Institutes of the Laws of England devotes a chapter to
the reform legislation designed to control the practices of these “vexatious relators, informers,
and promoters,” whom he classifies as turbidum hominum genus (a class of unruly men)10 and as
a species among the classes of “viperous vermin”11—a class was so unpopular that Queen
Elizabeth I at one time found it necessary to issue a proclamation shielding its members from
mob violence.12 Legislative reform, however, appears to have been effective, because a century
7 Translated in Attenborough, THE LAWS OF THE EARLIEST ENGLISH KINGS 27 (1963); described in Plucknett, EDWARD I
AND CRIMINAL LAW 31-2 (1960), and Beck, The False Claims Act and the English Eradication of Qui Tam Legislation,
78 NORTH CAROLINA LAW REVIEW 539, 567 (2000).
8 E.g., 12 EDWARD II, ch. 6 (1318), 1 STATS. OF THE REALM 177, 178 (“ ... no officer in City or in Borough ... shall .
merchandise for Wines ... And if any do, and be thereof convict[ed], the Merchandize whereof he is convict[ed] shall
be forfeit[ed] to the King, and the third part thereof shall be delivered to the Party that sued the Offender, as the King’s
Gift ... “); 22 EDWARD IV, ch. 8 (1482), 2 STATS. OF THE REALM 468, 476 (export violations required the offender to
forfeit the contraband or its value and the statute provided that “our Lord the King to have as well the one Half of all
such Merchandise forfeited and seised, as the one half of all Sums of Money which shall be recovered by Action in the
Form aforementioned, [to pursue] for Value of any such Goods so forfeited; and the Person or Persons which shall
seise or sue in the Form aforesaid, to have the other Half of the same ... ”); 32 HENRY VIII, ch. 9, §3 (1540), 3 STATS.
OF THE REALM 753, 753 (suborning perjury was made subject to a £10 penalty and “Th[e] one moytie [i.e., half] thereof
to the King our sourveraine lorde and th[e] other moytie to him that w[i]ll sue for the same by action of de[b]t[,] bill[,]
playnte or information in any of the Kinges Courtis ... ”).
9 IV HOLDSWORTH, A HISTORY OF ENGLISH LAW 356 (1903). Coke strikes a similar note and adds the evils of forum
shopping to a defendant’s inconvenience, expense, and disadvantage, COKE, THE THIRD PART OF THE INSTITUTES OF THE
LAWS OF ENGLAND 192, 194 (1628)(“First, many penall laws obsolete, and in time grown apparently impossible, or
inconvenient to be performed, remained as snares, whereupon the relator, informer, or promooter did vex and entangle
the subject ... The second mischief was, that common informers ... drew all informations for any offence, in any place
within the realm of England against any penall law to some of the kings courts as Westminister, to the intolerable
charge, vexation, and trouble of the subject ... The third mischief was, that in informations, &c. the offence supposed to
be against the penall law, and to be committed in one county, was at the pleasure of the informer, &c. alledged in any
country where he would, where neither party nor witnesse was known, against the right institution of the law, that the
jury (for their better notice) should come de vicineto of the place where the fact was committed”).
10 The term, which describes a species of lawless men who disrupt the normal peace and order of society, can be
alternatively translated as, “a wild or disorderly class of men,” see Beck, The False Claims Act and the English
Eradication of Qui Tam Legislation, 78 NORTH CAROLINA LAW REVIEW 539, 578 n. 201 (2000).
11 COKE, THE THIRD PART OF THE INSTITUTES OF THE LAWS OF ENGLAND 191, 194 (1628).
12 Protecting Informers, 8 ELIZABETH I, PROCLAMATION OF NOVEMBER 10, 1566, reprinted with transliteration in II
HUGHES & LARKIN, TUDOR ROYAL PROCLAMATIONS, 1553-1587, 288-89 (1969)(“The Queen’s majesty, understanding
the great disorder that of late hath been and yet is daily used in and about the cities of London and Westminster, and
especially in and about Westminster Hall and the palace of Westminster, by divers light and evil-disposed persons who
(continued...)
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and a half after Coke’s comments, Blackstone describes qui tam without criticism, expect to note
a statutorily-cured abuse.13
Early American Experience
Qui tam was no stranger to colonial America nor to the early Republic. Colonial legislatures
enacted qui tam statutes of their own,14 and colonial courts heard qui tam cases arising under
these statutes,15 as well as under English law.16 Qui tam statutes dot the work of the first
Congresses of the new Republic,17 and qui tam cases appear among the cases of the early federal
(...continued)
in great routs and companies have assembled themselves together against such as be informers upon penal laws and
statutes, commonly called promoters; and so being assembled, have not only beaten and very evil treated divers of the
same informers but also have made great outcries against the same persons, where the courts and places of justice in
Westminster Hall and other places thereabouts have been much disquieted and troubled, and the Queen’s majesty’s
peas broken. . .. Wherefore her majesty doth straightly charge and command all persons that they nor any of them do
hereafter commit ... any such disorder or misbehavior ... against any such informers ... upon pain to suffer
imprisonment of their bodies by the space of three months ... ”). The Proclamation is available without transliteration in
GREAT BRITAIN SOVEREIGNS, 1558-1603: PROCLAMATIONS, 373 (1971)(DeCapo Press).
13 III BLACKSTONE, COMMENTARIES ON THE LAWS OF ENGLAND 160 (1768)(transliteration supplied)(“But, more usually,
these forfeitures created by statute are given at large, to any common informer; or, in other words, to any such person
or persons as will sue for the same: and hence such actions are called popular actions, because they are given to the
people in general. Sometimes one part is given to the king, to the poor, or to some public use, and the other part to the
informer or prosecutor and then the suit is called a qui tam action, because it is brought by a person ‘qui tam pro
domino rege, &c, quam pro seipso in hac parte sequitur.’ If the king therefore himself commences this suit, he shall
have the whole forfeiture. But if any one hath begun a qui tam, or popular, action, no other person can pursue it; and
the verdict passed upon the defendant in the first suit is a bar to all others, and conclusive even to the king himself. This
has frequently occasioned offenders to procure their own friends to begin a suit, in order to forestall and prevent other
actions: which practice is in some measure prevented by a statute made in the reign of a very sharp-sighted prince in
penal laws ... ”).
14 E.g., COLONIAL LAWS OF MASSACHUSETTS 8 (1686)(penalties for fraud in the sale of bread to be distributed one-third
to inspector who discovered the fraud and remainder for the benefit of the town where the offense occurred); ID. at 54
(penalties for catching mackerel out of season to be distributed one half to the informer and one half to the town where
the offense occurred); 1 STATUTES OF CONNECTICUT 531 (1672)(penalties of 10 shillings for permitting a night-time
disorderly assembly under one’s roof to be distributed half to the town and half to the individual who filed the
complaint); 1 COLONIAL LAWS OF NEW YORK, 1664-1719, 279, 281 (1692)(penalty of £50 for an officer’s failure to
perform duties for the prevention of piracy to be distributed one moiety to the informer and one to the province); ID. at
845 (1715)(20 shilling penalties for taking oysters out of season to be distributed half to the informer and half to the
benefit of the poor of the town where the offense occurred); 2 COLONIAL LAWS OF NEW YORK, 1720-1737, 988, 989-90
(1737)(penalties of £30 for peddling without a license to be distributed one moiety to the informer and one for the
benefit of the town where the offense occurred); 7 VIRGINIA STATUTES (HENNING) 282, 285 (1759)(penalties for
peddling without a license to be distributed one moiety to the king for the support of the College of William & Mary
and one to informer who brings the action on the debt for its recovery); IV STATUTES OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1752-1786,
460 (1778)(penalties of £1,000 for acting as a magistrate without authorization to be distributed one half to the public
treasury and one half to those who sued for their recover).
15 E.g., Churchill v. Blackburn, 1 Va. Colonial Dec. R26 (Va. Gen. Ct. 1730); Musgrove, qui tam v. Gibbs, 1 U.S. 216
(Pa. 1787).
16 E.g., Britton, qui tam v. Ridgely, 4 H. & McH. 503 (Md. Prov. 1768)(3 & 4 GEORGE II, ch.12); Anderson, qui tam v.
Winston, 2 Va. Colonial Dec. B201 (Va. Gen. Ct. 1735)(32 HENRY VIII, ch. 9).
17 E.g., section 3, Act of March 1, 1790, 1 Stat. 101, 102 (1790); section 4, Act of July 20, 1790, 1 Stat. 131, 133
(1790); section 3, Act of July 22, 1790, 1 Stat. 137, 138 (1970); section 44, Act of March 2, 1791, 1 Stat. 198, 209
(1791).
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courts.18 By the turn of the twentieth century, qui tam statutes had largely fallen into disuse in this
country, although they often remained on the books.
Contemporary Federal Qui Tam Statutes
In Stevens, the Supreme Court identified four contemporary federal qui tam statutes: the False
Claims Act, the Patent Act, and two Indian protection laws.19 One of the Indian protection
statutes, 25 U.S.C. 81, has since been amended so that it no longer authorizes a qui tam action. Of
the others, the False Claims provision is by far the most often invoked.
Congress has enacted a number of other statutes, beyond those with obvious qui tam markings,
which might be similarly characterized. The Supreme Court observed in United States ex rel.
Marcus v. Hess that “statutes providing for a reward to informers which do not specifically either
authorize or forbid the informer to institute the action are construed to authorize him to sue.”20
The suggestion encouraged environmentalists to bring qui tam actions based on an informer-
reward provision in the Rivers and Harbors Act. The lower courts were not particularly receptive
to the suggestion.21 In fact thus far, they have generally refused to recognize the authority to bring
a qui tam action under the Rivers and Harbors Act.22
Yet the Court mentioned the suggestion again in Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United
States ex rel. Stevens,23 and in citing the existing qui tam-specific statutes, pointed out two of the
qui tam-silent informer-reward statutes.24 The lower federal courts, however, continue to maintain
that “Congress must explicitly create qui tam statutes.”25
18 E.g., United States v. Simms, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 252 (1803); Adams v. Woods, 6 U.S. (2 Cranch) 336 (1805); The
Emulous, 1 F.Cas. 697 (D. Mass. 1813)(No. 4,479), rev’d sub nom., Brown v. United States, 12 U.S. (8 Cranch) 110
(1814).
19 Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S. 765, 768-69 n.1 (2000), referring to
31 U.S.C. 3729-3733; 35 U.S.C. 292; 25 U.S.C. 81; and 25 U.S.C. 201, respectively. A fifth, not identified, 26 U.S.C.
7341 (sale of untaxed, taxable property), appears to have been rarely used.
20 United States ex rel. Marcus v. Hess, 317 U.S. 537, 541 n.4. (1943).
21 Bass Anglers Sportsman’s Soc. v. U.S. Plywood-Champion Papers, Inc., 324 F.Supp. 302, 306 (S.D.Tex. 1971)
(“Justice Black’s dictum [from Hess and quoted above] would appear to state the law too broadly. The qui tam action
depends entirely upon statutory authorization, as it has never found its way into the common law. The action arises
only upon a statutory grant. The fact that someone is entitled by statute to share in some penalty or forfeiture does not
necessarily also give such person the right to bring an original action to recover such penalty or forfeiture. There must
be statutory authority, either express or implied, for the informer to bring the qui tam action”).
22 Jacklovich v. Interlake, Inc., 458 F.2d 923, 924 (7th Cir. 1972) (no qui tam authority may be drawn from the informer
reward provision of the Rivers and Harbors Act); Connecticut Action Now, Inc. v. Roberts Plating Co., 457 F.2d 81,
84-8 (2d Cir. 1972); Gerbingh ex rel. United States v. I.T.T. Rayoinier Inc., 332 F.Supp. 309, 310 (M.D.Fla. 1971);
Bass Anglers Sportsman’s Soc. v. Scholze Tannery, Inc., 329 F.Supp. 339, 344-45 (E.D.Tenn. 1971); Bass Anglers
Sportsman’s Soc. v. U.S. Plywood-Champion Papers, Inc., 324 F.Supp. at 306-307.
23 Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S. 765, 777 n.7 (2000), quoting United
States ex rel. Marcus v. Hess, 317 U.S. 537, 541 n.4. (1943).
24 Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S. at 768-69 n.1, citing 18 U.S.C. 962
(vessels armed against nations with whom the U.S. is at peace); 46 U.S.C. 723 (now 46 U.S.C. 801030) (salvage of
ship wrecks off the Florida coast). Other statutes of this sort include: 15 U.S.C. 1177 (confiscation of gambling devices
pursuant to customs procedures); 16 U.S.C. 422d (theft or malicious mischief involving property on Moores Creek
National Battlefield); 16 U.S.C. 425g (theft or malicious mischief involving property on Fredericksburg and
Spotsylvania County Battle Field Memorials); 16 U.S.C. 430i (theft or malicious mischief involving property in
Guilford Courthouse National Military Park); 18 U.S.C. 512 (confiscation of motor vehicles with altered identification
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False Claims Act
Civil War Origins
The False Claims Act originated as the Act of March 2, 1863, 12 Stat. 696 (1863). Its brief
legislative history is devoted almost exclusively to a subsequently abandoned proposal that all
offenders, both military and civilian, be tried by courts martial.26 Senator Howard, the sponsor
and floor manager of the bill in the Senate, provided the only explicit explanation of the qui tam
provision:
The other clauses which follow, and which prescribe the mode of proceeding to punish
persons who are not in the military service of the United States, I take it, are open to no
serious objection. The effect of them is simply to hold out to a confederate a strong
temptation to betray his coconspirator, and bring him to justice. The bill offers, in short, a
reward to the informer who comes into court and betrays his coconspirator, if he be such; but
it is not confined to that class. Even the district attorney, who is required to be vigilant in the
prosecution of such cases, may be also the informer, and entitle himself to one half the
forfeiture under the qui tam clause, and to one half of the double damages which may be
recovered against the person committing the act. In short, sir, I have based the fourth, fifth,
sixth, and seventh sections upon the old-fashion idea of hold out a temptation, and “setting a
rogue to catch a rogue,” which is the safest and most expeditious way I have ever discovered
of bringing rogues to justice.27
As enacted, the statute prohibited various frauds against the government, including making or
presenting false claims, false vouchers, false oaths, forged signatures, theft, embezzlement, and
conspiracy.28 The proscriptions applied to both military personnel and civilians.29 Civilian
offenders faced a sentence of imprisonment of from one to five years or a fine of not less than
$1,000 nor more than $5,000.30 They also faced civil liability in the amount of $2,000, double the
amount of damage sustained by the United States, and costs.31 Any person might bring suit in the
name of the United States to recover the civil penalties, although the suit could only be settled
with the consent of the court and federal prosecutors.32 The private parties, known as relators,33
(...continued)
numbers pursuant to customs procedures); 18 U.S.C. 1955 (confiscation of illegal gambling business property pursuant
to customs procedures); 18 U.S.C. 1963 (confiscation of racketeering enterprise-related property pursuant to customs
procedures); 18 U.S.C. 2513 (confiscation of communications interception devices pursuant customs procedures); 19
U.S.C. 1619 (confiscation under the customs laws); 26 U.S.C. 7214 (unlawful acts by revenue officers or agents); 50
U.S.C. 215 (confiscation of property used in aid of an insurrection).
25 Stalley v. Methodist Healthcare, 517 F.3d 911, 920 (6th Cir. 2008); see also United Seniors Ass’n, Inc. v. Philip
Morris USA, 500 F.3d 18, 23 (1st Cir. 2007).
26 33 Cong. Globe 952-960 (1863).
27 Id. at 955-56 (remarks of Sen. Howard).
28 Section 1, Act of March 2, 1863, 12 Stat. at 696-97 (1863).
29 Sections 1 and 3, Act of March 2, 1863, 12 Stat. at 696-97, 698.
30 Section 3, Act of March 2, 1863, 12 Stat. at 698.
31 Id.
32 Section 4, Act of March 2, 1863, 12 Stat. at 698.
33 The term “relator” derives from the style used in qui tam suits. For example, the case that figures prominently in the
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were entitled to half of the penalty recovered and costs, if successful.34 The qui tam provisions
were codified in the Revised Statutes35 and continued relatively unchanged until 1943 when the
Attorney General sought to have them repealed.36
1943 Amendments
On August 28, 1942, Attorney General Biddle requested repeal of the qui tam provisions in
identical letters to the Speaker of the House and the Chairman of the Senate Judiciary
Committee.37 He explained that:
The reasons advanced by Senator Howard for the enactment of these sections are no longer
pertinent. Recent experience shows that plaintiffs in informers’ suits not only fail to furnish
to the United States the information which is the basis of their actions, but on the contrary, at
times base the litigation on information which has been secured by the Government in the
regular course of law enforcement. Such plaintiffs at times not only use information
contained in indictments returned against the defendant, but also seek to use Government
files to prove their cases. Consequently, informers’ suits have become mere parasitical
actions, occasionally brought only after law-enforcement offices have investigated and
prosecuted persons guilty of a violation of law and solely because of the hope of a large
reward.38
He also referred to a court of appeals decision that seemed to reflect judicial condemnation of the
qui tam provisions.39 The Senate passed the repeal proposal with little debate at the close of the
77th Congress.40 The House acted with similar dispatch and passed a comparable bill when it
convened in the 78th Congress.41 In the interim, however, the Supreme Court had repudiated the
lower court opinion which the Attorney General had cited.42 Moreover, opposition to repeal had
(...continued)
1943 amendments was styled United States ex rel. Marcus v. Hess. “Ex rel.” stands for “ex rationale,” which in this
context means “in relation to.” Thus, “United States ex rel. Marcus” means the “United States in relation to the
allegations brought by Marcus.”
34 Section 6, Act of March 2, 1863, 12 Stat. at 698.
35 The qui tam provisions appeared in REV. STAT. §§3490-3494; the criminal provisions in REV. STAT. §5438 (1876).
The criminal provisions have remained separate and are now found in 18 U.S.C. 286-287. Their evolution is beyond the
scope of this report.
36 31 U.S.C. 231-235 (1940 ed.).
37 Printed in S. Rept. No. 77-1708, at 1-2 (1942); H. Rept. No. 78-263 at 1-2 (1943).
38 S. Rept. No. 77-1708, at 2; H. Rept. No. 78-263 at 2.
39 Id. (“In a recent informer’s action, United States ex rel. Marcus v. Hess, 127 F. (2d) 233, the Circuit Court of
Appeals for the Third Circuit, in reversing a judgment in the sum of $315,100.91 in favor of the informer made the
following observations (p. 235): ‘Qui tam actions have always been regarded with disfavor: It is wrong for a free
country to allow an informer to seek redress for his own pecuniary advantage in respect of a public wrong in which he
has no direct personal interest or concern. A wrong to the State should surely be atoned for by a penalty payable to the
State alone. * * * Hurst, The Common Informer, 147 Contemporary Review 189, 190’”) .
40 88 Cong. Rec. 9138 (1942)(S. 2707).
41 89 Cong. Rec. 2801 (1943)(H.R. 1203).
42 United States ex rel. Marcus v. Hess, 317 U.S. 537, 541 (1943)(“We cannot accept either the interpretive approach or
the actual decision of the court below. Qui tam suits have been frequently permitted by legislative action, and have not
been without defense by the courts”). In support of this latter point, the Supreme Court cited a nineteenth century
opinion which lauded qui tam suits, Id. at 541 n. 5, quoting United States v. Griswold, 24 F. 361, 366 (D. Ore. 1885)
(“The statute is a remedial one. It is intended to protect the treasury against the hungry and unscrupulous host that
(continued...)
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developed in the Senate.43 As a consequence, the Senate Judiciary Committee recommended
curtailing, rather than repealing, the false claim qui tam provisions.44 The two Houses ultimately
concurred and passed Public Law 78-213, 57 Stat. 608 (1943).
The legislation required relators to provide the government with the evidence upon which their
litigation was based and to allow the government 60 days to intervene.45 It precluded qui tam suits
based on information already within the government’s possession,46 and it reduced the relator’s
share of a successful suit from 50% to no more than 25% (no more than 10% should the
government litigate the case).47
1986 Amendments
The 1943 amendments addressed reform of those qui tam procedures seen as rewarding the
unworthy and obstructing other law enforcement efforts. The 1986 amendments reinvigorated qui
tam procedures in the face of the evidence of extensive fraud against the United States.48 They
reflected a fairly wide array of concerns. Changes included:
• an explicit cause of action for reverse false claims (false statements calculated to
reduce an obligation to pay the United States),49
• a cause of action for retaliation against whistleblowers,50
• an increase in sanctions from a penalty of not more than $2,000 and double damages
to a penalty of not less than $5,000 nor more than $10,000 and treble damages,51
(...continued)
encompasses it on every side, and should be construed accordingly. It was passed upon the theory, based on experience
as old as modern civilization, that one of the least expensive and most effective means of preventing frauds on the
treasury is to make the perpetrators of them liable to actions by private persons acting, if you please, under the strong
stimulus of personal ill will or the hope of gain. Prosecutions conducted by such means compare with the ordinary
methods as the enterprising privateer does to the slow-going public vessel”).
43 S. Rept. No. 78-291, Pt.2 (1943)(minority views of Sen. Langer).
44 S. Rept. No. 78-291 (1943).
45 57 Stat. at 608, 31 U.S.C. 232(C)(1946 ed.).
46 57 Stat. at 609, 31 U.S.C. 232(C)(1946 ed.).
47 57 Stat. at 609; compare, 31 U.S.C. 234 (1940 ed.), with 31 U.S.C. 232(E)(1946 ed.).
48 S. Rept. No. 99-345, at 2-3 (1986)(“In 1985 ... 45 of the 100 largest defense contractors, including 9 of the top 10,
were under investigation for multiple fraud offenses. Additionally, the Justice Department has reported that in the last
year, four of the largest defense contractors ... have been convicted of criminal offenses while another ... has been
indicted and awaits trial.... The Department of Justice has estimated fraud as draining 1 to 10 percent of the entire
Federal budget. Taking into account the spending level in 1985 of nearly $1 trillion, fraud against the Government
could be costing taxpayers anywhere from $10 to $100 billion annually”); see also H. Rept. No. 99-660, at 18 (1986).
49 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(7)(1988 ed.). Although some believed the False Claims Act already covered such misconduct, the
Justice Department urged adoption of an explicit provision to avoid any ambiguity suggested by the case law, S. Rept.
No. 99-345, at 15 (1986); H. Rept. No. 99-660, at 20 (1986).
50 31 U.S.C. 3730(h)(1988 ed.). H. Rept. No. 99-660, at 23 (“Under current law, there is no federal whistle blower
protection statute for persons who are fired or otherwise discriminated against by their employer because of their lawful
participation in a False Claims Act case. Often, the employee within the company may be the only person who can
bring the information forward. If the person stands to lose his job, he may be unwilling to expose company fraud”); S.
Rept. No. 99-345, at 4-5.
51 Compare, 31 U.S.C. 3729 (1982 ed.), with 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1988 ed.). Recall that the statutory penalty had been set
at $2,000 since 1863.
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• an increase in the maximum award available to qui tam relators from not more than
25% to not more than 30%,52
• an express definition of the knowledge required for a violation and declaration that a
specific intent was unnecessary,53
• a specific preponderance-of-the-evidence burden of proof standard,54
• a declaration that states might act as qui tam relators,55
• a revised jurisdictional bar for qui tam suits based on matters of public knowledge,56
• an expanded statute of limitations,57 and
• an authorization for government use of civil investigative demands.58
2009 Amendments
The amendments of the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 reinforced the 1986
amendments, particularly in instances where judicial developments evidenced a need for
clarification.59 Modifications included:
• elimination of language suggesting that a false claim must be submitted directly to a
federal officer or employee,60
• addition of a specific materiality element defined to encompass those false statements
having natural tendency to influence payment,61
• expansion of the conspiracy proscription to apply to all of the substantive False
Claims Act violations,62 and
• enlargement of the reverse false claims offense to cover not only false statements but
any improper avoidance.63
52 Compare, 31 U.S.C. 3730(c)(2)(1982 ed.), with 31 U.S.C. 3730(d)(2)(1988 ed.).
53 31 U.S.C. 3729(b)(1988 ed.). The Committee expressed concerned that absent a specific provision the courts would
require actual knowledge of a statement’s false character and specific intent, S. Rept. No. 99-345, at 7, citing, United
States v. Aerodex, Inc. 469 F.2d 1003 (5th Cir. 1972); H. Rept. No. 99-660, at 20-1.
54 31 U.S.C. 3731(c). Without a statutory provision, some courts had imposed a more demanding standard, S. Rept.
No. 99-345, at 31(“Some courts have required that the United States prove its case by clear and convincing, or even by
clear, unequivocal, and convincing evidence”), citing United States. v. Ueber, 299 F.12d 310 (6th Cir. 1962); H. Rept.
No. 99-660 at 25-6.
55 31 U.S.C. 3732(b)(1988 ed.). At least one court had held in a Medicaid fraud action that they could not, United
States ex rel. Wisconsin v. Dean, 729 F.2d 1100 (7th Cir. 1984).
56 31 U.S.C. 3730(e)(1988 ed.).
57 31 U.S.C. 3731(b)(1988 ed.).
58 31 U.S.C. 3733. Civil investigative demands are a form of administrative subpoena.
59 Section 4, P.L. 111-21, 123 Stat. 1617, 1621 (2009).
60 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(A).
61 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(B), (G), (b)(4).
62 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(C).
63 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(G).
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Current State of the Law
Persons Who May Be Liable
The False Claims Act declares that any “person” who violations its prohibitions may incur
liability. It does not define the term “person.” As a general rule, federal law understands the term
to “include corporations, companies, associations, firms, partnerships, societies, and joint stock
companies, as well as individuals,” 1 U.S.C. 1. Local governments are considered persons for
purposes of False Claims Act suits brought by private parties,64 but states65 and Indian tribes are
not.66 The statute also denies federal courts jurisdiction over certain False Claims Act suits
brought by private parties against Members of Congress, members of the federal judiciary, senior
federal officials, or members of the armed forces.67
Who May Bring an Action
The False Claims Act is designed to allow private individuals to sue on behalf of the government,
but any False Claims Act litigation takes place in the shadow of the government’s prerogatives.
The action is brought in the name of the United States. The Attorney General may bring an action
for violations, 31 U.S.C. 3730(a). Although a private party may also bring such an action, 31
U.S.C. 3730(b), the government may elect to assume primary responsibility for the litigation from
the beginning, 31 U.S.C. 3730(c)(1). If it initially chooses not to do so, the government is
nevertheless free to intervene later in the proceedings upon a showing of cause, 31 U.S.C.
3730(c)(3). The government is likewise free to move to dismiss or settle the litigation over the
objections of the relator, as long as the relator is given an opportunity to be heard, 31 U.S.C.
3730(c)(2)(A), (B). The government may also petition the court to limit the relator’s participation
in the litigation in the interest of a more effective presentation of the action.68
64 Cook County v. United States ex rel. Chandler, 538 U.S. 119, 122 (2003).
65 Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S. 765, 787-88 (2000).
66 United States v. Menominee Tribal Enterprises, 601 F.Supp.2d 1061, 1068 (E.D.Wis. 2009).
67 31 U.S.C. 3730(e)(1) and (2) provide:
“(1) No court shall have jurisdiction over an action brought by a former or present member of the armed forces under
subsection (b) of this section against a member of the armed forces arising out of such person’s service in the armed
forces.
“(2)(A) No court shall have jurisdiction over an action brought under subsection (b) against a Member of Congress, a
member of the judiciary, or a senior executive branch official if the action is based on evidence or information known
to the Government when the action was brought.
“(B) For purposes of this paragraph, ‘senior executive branch official’ means any officer or employee listed in
paragraphs (1) through (8) of section 101(f) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.).”
68 31 U.S.C. 3730(c)(2)(C) (“Upon a showing by the Government that unrestricted participation during the course of
the litigation by the person initiating the action would interfere with or unduly delay the Government’s prosecution of
the case, or would be repetitious, irrelevant, or for purposes of harassment, the court may, in its discretion, impose
limitations on the person’s participation, such as—(i) limiting the number of witnesses the person may call; (ii) limiting
the length of the testimony of such witnesses; (iii) limiting the person’s cross-examination of witnesses; or (iv)
otherwise limiting the participation by the person in the litigation”).
The court may also limit the relator’s participation in the interest of avoiding undue harassment of the defendant, 31
U.S.C. 3730(c)(2)(D)(“Upon a showing by the defendant that unrestricted participation during the course of the
litigation by the person initiating the action would be for purposes of harassment or would cause the defendant undue
burden or unnecessary expense, the court may limit the participation by the person in the litigation”).
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A relator may not bring a False Claims Act action based on public information or information
from official proceedings, unless the relator is the original source of the information.69 In
addition, the False Claims Act features a first-to-file bar which precludes a second relator from
bringing a later copycat action.70 The bar extends to any claims that allege the same material or
essential elements of the same underlying fraud.71 Furthermore, a member of the armed forces
may not bring an action against another member based on the defendant’s service.72 On the other
hand, even though relators are often referred to as private parties, government employees may
bring a False Claims Act qui tam action as long as one of the statutory bars does not apply.73
Basis for Liability
Seven forms of misconduct give rise to civil liability under section 3729. They occur when
anyone:
69 31 U.S.C. 3730(e)(4)(“(A) No court shall have jurisdiction over an action under this section based upon the public
disclosure of allegations or transactions in a criminal, civil, or administrative hearing, in a congressional,
administrative, or Government Accounting Office report, hearing, audit, or investigation, or from the news media,
unless the action is brought by the Attorney General or the person bringing the action is an original source of the
information. (B) For purposes of this paragraph, “original source” means an individual who has direct and independent
knowledge of the information on which the allegations are based and has voluntarily provided the information to the
Government before filing an action under this section which is based on the information”); see also Rockwell
International Corp. v. United States, 549 U.S. 457, 467-75 (2007).
70 31 U.S.C. 3730(b)(5)(“When a person brings an action under this subsection, no person other than the Government
may intervene or bring a related action based on the facts underlying the pending action”). “The first-to-file bar thus
functions both to eliminate parasitic plaintiffs who piggy back off the claims of a prior relator, and to encourage
legitimate relators to file quickly by protecting the spoils of the first to bring a claim,” In re Natural Gas Royalties Qui
Tam Litigation (CO2 Appeals), 566 F.3d 956, 961 (10th Cir. 2009).
A similar bar applies with respect to actions based on civil litigation or administrative penalty enforcement
proceedings to which the United States is a party, 31 U.S.C. 3730(e)(3)(“In no event may a person bring an action
under subsection (b) which is based upon allegations or transactions which are the subject of a civil suit or an
administrative civil money penalty proceeding in which the Government is already a party”).
71 In re Natural Gas Royalties Qui Tam Litigation (CO2 Appeals), 566 F.3d at 962; United States ex rel. Branch
Consultants v. Allstate Insurance Co., 560 F.3d 371, 377 (5th Cir. 2009); United States ex rel. Poteet v. Medtronic, Inc.,
552 F.3d 503, 516 (6th Cir. 2009); United States ex rel. Hampton v. Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp., 318 F.3d 214,
217-18 (D.C.Cir. 2003); United States ex rel. Lujan v. Hughes Aircraft Co., 243 F.3d 1181, 1189 (9th Cir. 2001); United
States ex rel. LaCorte v. SmithKline Beecham Clinical Labs., 149 F.3d 227, 232-33 (3d Cir. 1998).
72 31 U.S.C. 3730(e)(1).
73 United States ex rel. Holmes v. Consumer Insurance Group, 318 F.3d 1199, 1212 (10th Cir. 2003)(en banc), citing
United States ex rel. Marcus v. Hess, 317 U.S. 537, 546 (1943)(“Thus, we believe that Marcus, to the extent it
construed the qui tam provision as allowing a government official to file suit as a relator based upon information
obtained in the course of his or her official duties, remains valid”); United States ex rel. Hagood v. Sonoma County
Water Agency, 929 F.2d 1416, 1419-420 (9th Cir. 1991)(“The United States further argues that the ‘public disclosure’
required by the statute occurred when Hagood as a government employee ‘disclosed’ to himself as a member of the
public information on which he based his suit. To say that the argument of the United States is tortured is to state the
obvious.... we hold that no ‘public disclosure’ was made”); United States ex rel. Williams v. NEC Corp., 931 F.2d
1493, 1496-1500 (11th Cir. 1991); United States ex rel. LeBlanc v. Raytheon Co., Inc., 913 F.2d 17, 20 (1st Cir. 1990);
see also United States ex rel. Burns v. A.D. Roe Co., Inc., 186 F.3d 717, 722-23 (6th Cir. 1999)(declining to address the
argument that government employees are per se ineligible to file False Claims Act qui tam actions, but noting that the
argument has been uniformly rejected by other courts). A federal employee may have difficulty qualifying as an
“original source” of publicly available information upon which an action is based if the nature of his duties is that he is
obligated to disclose the information to his superiors rather than “voluntarily” disclosing it as the definition of “original
source” requires, United States ex rel. Fine v. Chevron, U.S.A., Inc., 72 F.3d 740, 742-44 (9th Cir. 1995)(“[T]he fact
Fine was employed specifically to disclose fraud is sufficient to render his disclosures nonvoluntary”).
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(A) knowingly presents, or causes to be presented, a false or fraudulent claim for payment or
approval;
(B) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement material to
a false or fraudulent claim;
(C) conspires to commit a violation of subparagraph (A), (B), (D), (E), (F), or (G);
(D) has possession, custody, or control of property or money used, or to be used, by the
Government and knowingly delivers, or causes to be delivered, less than all of that money or
property;
(E) is authorized to make or deliver a document certifying receipt of property used, or to be used,
by the Government and, intending to defraud the Government, makes or delivers the receipt
without completely knowing that the information on the receipt is true;
(F) knowingly buys, or receives as a pledge of an obligation or debt, public property from an
officer or employee of the Government, or a member of the Armed Forces, who lawfully may not
sell or pledge property; or
(G) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement material to
an obligation to pay or transmit money or property to the Government, or knowingly conceals or
knowingly and improperly avoids or decreases an obligation to pay or transmit money or property
to the Government, 31 U.S.C. 3729.
Additional liability may also flow from any retaliatory action taken against those who seek to
stop violations of the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. 3730(h).
Presentation of a false or fraudulent claim (31 U.S.C. 3279(a)(1)(A))
Prior to enactment of the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 (2009 Act),74 this section
was designated 31 U.S.C. 3279(a)(1) and read, “(a) Any person who—knowingly presents, or
causes to be presented, to an officer or employee of the United States Government or member of
the Armed Forces of the United States a false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval.”75 The
language had been construed in the D.C. Circuit’s Totten opinion to mean that liability “only
attach[ed] if the claim [was] ‘presented to an officer or employee of the Government.’”76
Congress removed the reference to federal government employees and members of the armed
services in order to clarify “that direct presentment is not required for liability to attach.”77 The
claims encompassed within section 3729(a)(1)(A) are those presented to the federal government,
its employees or agents, as well as those presented to others for payment, directly or indirectly,
out of federal funds.78 Liability, however, does not flow from simple negligence;79 a defendant
74 P.L. 111-21, 123 Stat. 1617 (2009).
75 31 U.S.C. 3279 (2006 ed. & Supp. II).
76 S. Rept. No. 111-10, at 10 (2009), quoting, United States ex rel. Totten v. Bombardier Corp., 380 F.3d 488, 490
(D.C. Cir. 2004).
77 S. Rept. No. 111-10, at 11.
78 31 U.S.C. 3729(b)(2)(“the term ‘claim’—(A) means any request or demand, whether under a contract or otherwise,
for money or property and whether or not the United States has title to the money or property, that—(i) is presented to
an officer, employee, or agent of the United States; or (ii) is made to a contractor, grantee, or other recipient, if the
(continued...)
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must be shown to have known, been deliberately ignorant of, or recklessly disregarded the false
or fraudulent nature of the record or statement.80
Use of false records or statements material to a false or fraudulent claim (31
U.S.C. 3279(a)(1)(B))
Before the 2009 Act’s amendments, this section reached, “Any person who ... (2) knowingly
makes, uses, or causes to be made, or used, a false record or statement to get a false or fraudulent
claim paid or approved by the Government.”81 The 2009 Act amended the section to negate the
Supreme Court’s suggestion in Allison Engine 82 that liability under its provisions required proof
that “a defendant must intend that the Government itself pay the claim.”83 The 2009 Act also
made materiality a specific element of section 3729(a)(1)(B), thus requiring that the false record
or statement have “a natural tendency to influence, or be capable of influencing, the payment or
receipt of money or property.”84 At the time of enactment, most but not all of the lower courts to
consider the issue believed that section 3729 contained an implicit materiality requirement.85
Conspiracy to commit liability triggering misconduct (31 U.S.C. 3279(a)(1)(C))
At one time, this section (then referred to as section 3279(a)(3)) imposed civil liability upon those
who conspired “to defraud the Government by getting a false or fraudulent claim allowed or
paid.”86 To some, this meant that liability for substantive misconduct and conspiracy did not
(...continued)
money or property is to be spent or used on the Government’s behalf or to advance a Government program or interest,
and if the United States Government—(I) provides or has provided any portion of the money or property requested or
demanded; or (II) will reimburse such contractor, grantee, or other recipient for any portion of the money or property
which is requested or demanded; and (B) does not include requests or demands for money or property that the
Government has paid to an individual as compensation for Federal employment or as an income subsidy with no
restrictions on that individual’s use of the money or property”).
79 United States ex rel. Burlbaw v. Orenduff, 548 F.3d 931, 949 (10th Cir. 2008); United States ex rel. Farmer v. City of
Houston, 523 F.3d 333, 338 (5th Cir. 2008).
80 31 U.S.C. 3729(b)(1)( (1) the terms ‘knowing’ and ‘knowingly’—(A) mean that a person, with respect to
information—(i) has actual knowledge of the information; (ii) acts in deliberate ignorance of the truth or falsity of the
information; or (iii) acts in reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the information; and (B) require no proof of
specific intent to defraud”); United States ex rel. K & R Ltd. v. Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency, 530 F.3d 980,
983 (D.C.Cir. 2008); United States ex rel. Farmer v. City of Houston, 523 F.3d at 338; United States ex rel. Taylor-Vick
v. Smith, 513 F.3d 228, 230 (5th Cir. 2008).
81 31 U.S.C. 3720(a)(2)(2006 ed. & 2008 Supp.)(language removed by the 2009 Act in italics).
82 Allison Engine Co. v. United States ex rel. Sanders, 128 S.Ct. 2123 (2008).
83 S. Rept. No. 111-10, at 10 (2009), quoting, Allison Engine Co. v. United States ex rel. Sanders, 128 S.Ct. at 2128.
84 31 U.S.C. 3729(b)(4). The definition tracks the generally understand materiality standard, see e.g., United States v.
Bourseau, 531 F.3d 1159, 1171 (9th Cir. 2008), citing Neder v. United States, 527 U.S. 1, 16 (1999); United States ex
rel. Sanders v. North American Bus Industries, Inc., 546 F.3d 288, 297 (4th Cir. 2008); but see, Costner v. URS
Consultants, Inc., 153 F.3d 667, 677 (8th Cir. 1998)(adopting a materiality standard under which the misconduct must
have “the purpose and effect of causing the United States to pay out money it is not obligated to pay, or those actions
which intentionally deprive the United States of money it is lawfully due”).
85 United States v. Bourseau, 531 F.3d at 1170-171, noting the agreement of the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth
Circuits, but pointing out that in United States ex rel. Cantekin v. University of Pittsburgh, 192 F.3d 402, 415 (3d Cir.
1999), the Third Circuit had “cast[] doubt on whether materiality is an element under the FCA, but [had] declin[ed] to
resolve the issue”).
86 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(3)(2006 ed. & Supp. II).
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correspond. For example, although civil liability might be incurred under then section 3279(a)(7)
for false statements calculated to conceal an obligation to pay the United States (reverse false
claims), a reverse false claims conspiracy might not be thought to result in liability since it would
not constitute a conspiracy to get a “claim allowed or paid,” as the language of the conspiracy
prohibition then required.87 The 2009 Act resolved the incongruity by recasting the section to
establish liability for conspiracy to engage in any misconduct covered by the substantive
pronouncements in section 3729(a)(1) not just the misconduct described in sections
3729(a)(1)(A) and 3729(a)(1)(B)(the only two sections to expressly refer to claims).88
Short-changing the government on the transfer of funds or other property (31
U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(D))
The 2009 Act streamlined this section, eliminating the receipt requirement and substituting a
knowledge element for one that once insisted on willful concealment or an intent to defraud.
Where the section once declared:
Any person who ... (4) has possession, custody, or control of property or money used, or to
be used, by the Government and, intending to defraud the Government or willfully to conceal
the property, delivers, or causes to be delivered, less property than the amount for which the
person receives a certificate or receipt ... is liable.... 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(4)(2006 ed. & Supp.
II).
It now states:
Any person who ... (D) has possession, custody, or control of property or money used, or to
be used, by the Government and knowingly delivers, or causes to be delivered, less than all
of that money or property ... is liable.... 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(D).
Issuing a false government receipt (31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(E))
Section 3729(a)(1)(E)(previously designated section 3729(a)(5)) establishes civil liability for any
individual, authorized to certify receipt of property on behalf of the government, who knowingly
certifies falsely.89
87 United State ex rel. Huangyan Import v. Nature’s Farm Products, 370 F.Supp.2d 993, 1102-1003 (N.D.Cal. 2005)
(“Admittedly, this creates an unusual lack of symmetry in the FCA’s structure: Normal and reverse false claims are
equally punishable as a substantive matter, but only conspiracies directed at the former, not the latter, are punishable....
The requirement that the conspiracy be directed at ‘getting a false or fraudulent claim allowed or paid,’ §3729(a)(3), is
unambiguous: Its plain meaning requires that the conspirators seek to be ‘paid’ or to have a claim on the treasury
‘allowed.’ This is not what allegedly happened here; the alleged conspirators in this case wanted to avoid paying
money to the United States”).
88 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(C)(“any person who ... (C) conspires to commit a violation of subparagraph (A), (B), (D), (E),
(F), or (G)” incurs liability).
89 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(E)(“Any person who ... (E) is authorized to make or deliver a document certifying receipt of
property used, or to be used, by the Government and, intending to defraud the Government, makes or delivers the
receipt without completely knowing that the information on the receipt is true ... is liable ... ”).
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Unlawful purchase of government property (31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(F))
Section 3729(a)(1)(F)(once section 3729(a)(6)) creates civil liability for those who purchase
government property, or who accept government property as security, from a government officer
or employee or member of the armed forces who has no authority to sell or pledge the property.90
Reverse false claims (31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(G))
The 2009 Act rewrote and substantially changed the scope of section 3729(a)(1)(G)(once section
3729(a)(7)), the so-called reverse false claims section. It is “described as a ‘reverse false claims’
provision because the financial obligation that is the subject of the fraud flows in the opposite of
the usual direction.”91 Instead of attempting to obtain money or property from the government,
the misconduct is designed to avoid providing money or property to the government. In its
present state, the section covers two forms of misconduct: (1) making or using a false statement
or record material to an obligation to provide the government with money or property, and (2)
knowingly concealing or improperly avoiding or decreasing an obligation to provide the
government with money or property. The first prong is the traditional form; the 2009 Act added
the second.
The Committee report accompanying passage of the 2009 Act explained that the addition was
designed for greater symmetry with sections 3729(a)(1)(A) and 3729(a)(1)(B). Where those
sections speak of misconduct calculated to induce excessive payments by the government, section
3729(a)(1)(G) speaks of misconduct calculated to avoid full payment to the government. Sections
3729(a)(1)(B) and (A) condemn making false statements and submitting false claims to induce
payment by the government; section 3729(a)(1)(G) was crafted to condemn making false
statements and engaging in other improper conduct calculated to avoid full payment of the
government. Until passage of the 2009 Act, section 3729(a)(1)(G)(then styled section 3729(a)(7))
only covered false statements, but had no false presentation counterpart.92 The section was
amended in hopes of filling the gap:
Any person who ... (G) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record
or statement material to an obligation to pay or transmit money or property to the
Government, or knowingly conceals or knowingly and improperly avoids or decreases an
obligation to pay or transmit money or property to the Government is liable.... 31 U.S.C.
3729(a)(1)(G)(language added by the 2009 Act in italics).93
90 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(F)(“Any person who ... (F) knowingly buys, or receives as a pledge of an obligation or debt,
public property from an officer or employee of the Government, or a member of the Armed Forces, who lawfully may
not sell or pledge property ... is liable ... ”).
91 United States ex rel. Ramadoss v. Caremark, Inc., 586 F.Supp.2d 668, 692 (W.D.Tex. 2008), quoting, United States
ex rel. Bahrani v. Conagra, 465 F.3d 1189, 1195 (10th Cir. 2006).
92 “Any person who ... (7) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement to conceal,
avoid, or decrease an obligation to pay or transmit money or property to the Government is liable.... ” 31 U.S.C.
3729(a)(7)(2006 ed. & Supp. II).
93 S. Rept. No. 111-10 at 13-4 (“Section 3729(a)(7) ... is commonly referred to as creating ‘reverse’ false claims
liability because it is designed to cover Government money or property that is knowingly retained by a person even
though they have no right to it. This provision is similar to the liability established under 3729(a)(2).... However, the
provision does not capture conduct described in 3729(a)(1), which imposes liability for actions to conceal, avoid, or
decrease an obligation directly to the Government. This legislation closes this loophole and incorporates an analogous
provision to 3729(a)(1) for ‘reverse’ false claims liability”).
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The new language does more than fill gaps. Unlike section 3729(a)(1)(A), it creates civil liability
for not only false or fraudulent claims, but for “any knowing and improper conduct.” Moreover,
unlike section 3729(a)(1)(A), it establishes liability without insisting on either direct or indirect
presentation.94 Nor need the misconduct involve a false or fraudulent statement or record;
conscious or recklessly improper conduct will suffice.95
Although the term “improper” is not defined, the 2009 Act added a new definition of “obligation”
which considerably enlarges the scope of the false statement and the improper avoidance prongs
of section 3729(a)(1)(G). Parsed to its constituent parts, the definition states:
obligation means
1. an established duty
2. whether fixed or not fixed
3. arising from
a. an express or implied
i. contractual,
ii. grantor-grantee, or
iii. licensor-licensee
relationship
b. a fee-based or similar relationship
c. statute or regulation, or
d. the retention of any overpayment.96
Earlier courts, operating without the benefit an explicit definition, had often construed the term
“obligation” more narrowly. Some courts had found that the reverse false claims section did not
“extend to the potential or contingent obligations to pay the government fines or penalties which
[had] not been levied or assessed ... and which [did] not arise out of an economic relationship
between the government and the defendant (such as a lease or a contract or the like).”97 Although
a few had held that the obligation need not always be fixed,98 most had “held that in order to
94 Id. at 14 (“The Committee also notes that the reverse false claims provision and amendments to that provision do not
include any new language that would incorporate or should otherwise be construed to include a presentment
requirement. This is consistent with various court decisions that have held that the current reverse false claims
provision does not contain a presentment requirement”), citing, United States ex rel. Bahrani v. Conagra, Inc., 465
F.3d 1189, 1208 (10th Cir. 2006) and United States ex rel. Koch v. Koch Industries, 57 F.Supp.2d 1122, 1144 (N.D.
Okla. 1999).
95 Recall that section 3729(b)(1) defines “knowingly” to mean actual knowledge, deliberate ignorance, or reckless
disregard.
96 31 U.S.C. 3729(b)(3)(“the term ‘obligation’ means an established duty, whether or not fixed, arising from an express
or implied contractual, grantor-grantee, or licensor-licensee relationship, from a fee-based or similar relationship, from
statute or regulation, or from the retention of any overpayment”).
97 United States ex rel. Marcy v. Rowan Companies, Inc., 520 F.3d at 391, quoting, United States ex rel. Bain v.
Georgia Gulf Corp., 386 F.3d 648, 657 (5th Cir. 2004); see also United States v. Pemco Aeroplex, Inc., 195 F.3d 1234,
1237 (11th Cir. 1999)(the section does cover obligations created by a contract between the government and the
defendant).
98 United States ex rel. Bahrani v. Conagra, 465 F.3d 1189, 1202 (10th Cir. 2006)(“We agree that there are instances in
(continued...)
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create liability under (a)(7), the obligations must be fixed and definite at the time of the false
claim.”99 The 2009 Act codified a more expansive view:
The term ‘obligation’ is now defined under new Section 3729(b)(3) and includes fixed and
contingent duties owed to the Government—including fixed liquidated obligations such as
judgments, and fixed, unliquidated obligations such as tariffs on imported goods.... By
including contingent obligations such as, ‘imposed contractual, quasi-contractual, grant-or-
grantee, licensor-licensee, fee-based, or similar relationships, this new section reflects the
Committee’s view, ... that an ‘obligation’ arises across the spectrum of possibilities from the
fixed amount debt obligation where all particulars are defined to the instance where there is a
relationship between the Government and a person that results in a duty to pay the
Government money, whether or not the amount owed is yet fixed.100
It remains to be seen whether the section includes false statements or improper conduct calculated
to mitigate the extent of a future fine or penalty assessment not constituting an obligation,
contingent or fixed, at the time of the statement or conduct.
Retaliatory actions (31 U.S.C. 3730(h))
The False Claims Act has for some time encouraged insiders to report and cooperate with efforts
to investigate and prosecute violations of the Act by offering them protection against retaliation.
Until passage of the 2009 Act, the False Claims Act condemned retaliation by employers against
employees and mentioned some of the protected forms of assistance. The courts concluded that
only employees might claim the section’s protection and that it exposed only employers to
liability.101 The 2009 Act expanded section 3730(h) to specifically include employees,
contractors, and agents and eliminated references to employers and specific examples of
protected assistance:
Any employee, contractor, or agent shall be entitled to all relief necessary to make that
employee, contractor, or agent whole, if that employee, contractor, or agent [who] is
discharged, demoted, suspended, threatened, harassed, or in any other manner discriminated
against in the terms and conditions of employment [by his or her employer] because of
lawful acts done by the employee, contractor, or agent on behalf of the employee, contractor,
or agent or associated others in furtherance of other efforts to stop 1 or more violations of
this subchapter [an action under this section, including investigation for, initiation of,
(...continued)
which a party is required to pay money to the government, but, at the time the obligation arises, the sum has not been
precisely determined”).
99 United States ex rel. Marcy v. Rowan Companies, Inc., 520 F.3d 384, 390 (5th Cir. 2008), citing, American Textile
Manufacturers Institute, Inc. v. The Limited, Inc., 190 F.3d 729, 735 (6th Cir. 1999) and United States v. Q Inter’l
Courier, Inc., 131 F.3d 770, 774 (8th Cir. 1997); see also, United States v. Bourseau, 531 F.3d 1159, 1169-170 (9th Cir.
2008).
100 S Rept. No. 111-10, at 14 (2009).
101 Vessell v. DPS Associates, 148 F.3d 407, 413 (4th Cir. 1998)(the section does not cover independent contractors);
United States ex rel. Siewick v. Jamison Science and Engineering, Inc., 322 F.3d 738, 740 (D.C.Cir. 2003)
(corporation’s President and CEO was not an employer and consequently beyond the section’s reach); Yesudian ex rel.
United States v. Howard University, 270 F.3d 969, 972 (D.C. Cir. 2001)(the section does not apply to an employee’s
supervisors); United States ex rel. Morgan v. Science Applications International Co., 604 F.Supp.2d 245, 250-51
(D.D.C. 2009)(the section does not apply to the employees of a subcontractor); United States ex rel. Saragoglou v.
Weill Medical College, 451 F.Supp.2d 613, 625 (S.D.N.Y. 2006)(the section does not apply to an employee’s
supervisors); Orell v. UMass Memorial Medical Center, Inc., 203 F.Supp.2d 52, 65-7 (D.Mass. 2002)(same).
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testimony for, or assistance in action filed or to be filed under this section, shall be entitled to
all relief necessary to make the employee whole]. 31 U.S.C. 3730(h) (language added in the
2009 Act appears in italics; language eliminated within brackets in bold).
Congress clearly intended to expand the protection to section 3730(h) to include contractors and
agents. It remains to be seen whether the courts will conclude that it intended also to expand
liability under the section beyond employers to include supervisors, contractors, and agents of an
employer.
Penalties and Awards
If a court finds a defendant liable under section 3729, it may award treble damages; a statutory
penalty ranging from $5,000 to $10,000; the government’s litigation costs; and a relator’s
expenses, attorneys’ fees, and costs.102 The court may reduce its damage award to no less than
double damages if it finds that a defendant made prompt disclosure and provided full cooperation
before judicial or administrative proceedings began.103 If a court finds an individual has been the
victim of retaliation in violation of section 3730(h), it may order the defendant to pay the
individual’s attorneys’ fees, litigation costs, and twice the amount of “back pay, interest on back
pay, and compensation for special damages sustained as a consequence” of the retaliation, 31
U.S.C. 3730(h)(2).
If the False Claims Act action succeeds, relators are entitled to a share in the proceeds of up to
30%. If the government has not participated in the litigation, they are entitled to an award of from
25% to 30%.104 If the government has participated in the litigation, they are entitled to an award
of from 15% to 25%,105 reduced to no more than 10% when their claim was based primarily on
public information.106 In any case, they are also entitled to attorneys’ fees, expenses, and costs,
but may be denied any award if they participated in the underlying fraud.107
102 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1), (3); 3730(d). The 2009 Act amended section 3729(a)(1) to provide for inflationary
adjustments of the $5,000-$10,000 statutory penalty.
103 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(2)(“If the court finds that—(A) the person committing the violation of this subsection furnished
officials of the United States responsible for investigating false claims violations with all information known to such
person about the violation within 30 days after the date on which the defendant first obtained the information; (B) such
person fully cooperated with any Government investigation of such violation; and (C) at the time such person furnished
the United States with the information about the violation, no criminal prosecution, civil action, or administrative
action had commenced under this title with respect to such violation, and the person did not have actual knowledge of
the existence of an investigation into such violation, [–] the court may assess not less than 2 times the amount of
damages which the Government sustains because of the act of that person”).
104 31 U.S.C. 3730(d)(2)(“If the Government does not proceed with an action under this section, the person bringing the
action or settling the claim shall receive an amount which the court decides is reasonable for collecting the civil penalty
and damages. The amount shall be not less than 25 percent and not more than 30 percent of the proceeds of the action
or settlement and shall be paid out of such proceeds. Such person shall also receive an amount for reasonable expenses
which the court finds to have been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs. All such expenses,
fees, and costs shall be awarded against the defendant”).
105 31 U.S.C. 3703(d)(1)(“If the Government proceeds with an action brought by a person under subsection (b), such
person shall, subject to the second sentence of this paragraph, receive at least 15 percent but not more than 25 percent
of the proceeds of the action or settlement of the claim, depending upon the extent to which the person substantially
contributed to the prosecution of the action ... Any payment to a person under the first or second sentence of this
paragraph shall be made from the proceeds. Any such person shall also receive an amount for reasonable expenses
which the court finds to have been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs. All such expenses,
fees, and costs shall be awarded against the defendant”).
106 Id. (“ ... Where the action is one which the court finds to be based primarily on disclosures of specific information
(continued...)
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If the defendant prevails in an False Claims Act action in which only a private relator has taken
part, the court may award the defendant attorneys’ fees and expenses, should it conclude that the
action was clearly frivolous, vexatious, or brought to harass.108 The test for whether attorneys’
fees and expenses are appropriate is said to be analogous to that used for prevailing defendants
under 42 U.S.C. 1988.109 Such awards are thought to be appropriate only under “rare and special
circumstances,”110 when the relator’s action is meritless, groundless, or without foundation;111
when allegations are bereft of factual support or when there is no reasonable chance of success;112
or when brought or pursued for an improper motive.113
Procedure
The False Claims Act states that prosecution of a violation of section 3729 must begin within six
years, although there is an exception for undiscovered fraud which extends the deadline to 10
years as long as the action is brought within three years of discovery.114 The courts are divided
(...continued)
(other than information provided by the person bringing the action) relating to allegations or transactions in a criminal,
civil, or administrative hearing, in a congressional, administrative, or Government Accounting Office report, hearing,
audit, or investigation, or from the news media, the court may award such sums as it considers appropriate, but in no
case more than 10 percent of the proceeds, taking into account the significance of the information and the role of the
person bringing the action in advancing the case to litigation ... ”).
107 31 U.S.C. 3730(d)(1), (2); 31 U.S.C. 3730(d)(3)(“Whether or not the Government proceeds with the action, if the
court finds that the action was brought by a person who planned and initiated the violation of section 3729 upon which
the action was brought, then the court may, to the extent the court considers appropriate, reduce the share of the
proceeds of the action which the person would otherwise receive under paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection, taking
into account the role of that person in advancing the case to litigation and any relevant circumstances pertaining to the
violation. If the person bringing the action is convicted of criminal conduct arising from his or her role in the violation
of section 3729 that person shall be dismissed from the civil action and shall not receive any share of the proceeds of
the action. Such dismissal shall not prejudice the right of the United States to continue the action, represented by the
Department of Justice”).
108 31 U.S.C. 3730(d)(4)(“If the Government does not proceed with the action and the person bringing the action
conducts the action, the court may award to the defendant its reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses if the defendant
prevails in the action and the court finds that the claim of the person bringing the action was clearly frivolous, clearly
vexatious, or brought primarily for purposes of harassment”). The term “expenses” does not include “costs” which
covers things like court fees and witness fees and may be awarded under the less demanding standards of Rule 54 of
the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, United States ex rel. Ritchie v. Lockheed Martin Corp., 558 F.3d 1161, 1171-172
(10th Cir. 2009); United States ex rel. Costner v. United States, 317 F.3d 889, 891 (8th Cir. 2003); United States ex rel.
Lindenthal v. General Dynamics Corp., 61 F.3d 1402, 1412-413 (9th Cir. 1995).
109 Pfingston v. Ronan Engineering Co., 284 F.3d 999, 1005-1006 (9th Cir. 2002); United States ex rel. Mikes v. Straus,
274 F.3d 687, 705 (2d Cir. 2001), each citing, S. Rept. No. 99-345, at 29 (1986).
110 United States ex rel. Rafizadeh v. Continental Common, Inc., 553 F.3d 869, 875 (5th Cir. 2008); Pfingston v. Ronan
Engineering Co. 284 F.3d at 1006-1007.
111 United States ex rel. Grynberg v. Praxair, Inc., 389 F.3d 1038, 1058 (10th Cir. 2004). “An action is not frivolous if
existing law or a reasonable suggestion for its extension, modification, or reversal supports the action,” United States ex
rel. Rafizadeh v. Continental Common, Inc., 553 F.3d at 875.
112 United States ex rel. Mikes v. Straus, 274 F.3d at 705; United States ex rel. Vuyyuru v. Jadhav, 555 F.3d 337, 356
(4th Cir. 2009).
113 Pfingston v. Ronan Engineering Co., 284 F.3d at 1006.
114 31 U.S.C. 3731(b)(“A civil action under section 3730 may not be brought—(1) more than 6 years after the date on
which the violation of section 3729 committed, or (2) more than 3 years after the date when facts material to the right
of action are known or reasonably should have been known by the official of the United States charged with
responsibility to act in the circumstances, but in no event more than 10 years after the date on which the violation is
committed, [–]whichever occurs last”).
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over the question of whether this extension is available to private parties or only in cases initiated
by the government.115 In the case of litigation for retaliatory misconduct under section
3730(h)(rather than one of section 3729’s proscriptions), parties must look to the most closely
analogous statute of limitations under state law, since the sole explicit False Claims Act provision
applies only to causes of action under section 3729.116
Until recently, some courts had held that the statute of limitations in cases where the government
elected to intervene did not relate back to the time of the relator’s original complaint.117 The 2009
Act added a new subsection to section 3731 to afford the government the advantage of the date of
the relator’s complaint as a cut-off date for statute of limitations purposes.118 Thus, a complaint,
which would be time barred as of the date of the government’s intervention, survives, if it would
not be time barred on the date of the relator’s earlier original complaint.
For private litigants, the process begins with a complaint filed under seal with the federal court in
the district in which a violation occurred or in which any of the defendants are found, resides, or
does business, 31 U.S.C. 3730(b)(2), 3732(a). Thereafter, relators must deliver all their material
evidence and information to the government, 31 U.S.C. 3730(b)(2). The government has 60 days,
or until the end of a longer period of any extensions granted by the court for cause, in which to
decide whether intervene, 31 U.S.C. 3730(b)(2), (3), (4). The government has at its disposal civil
investigative demand authority which allows it to compel the production of material and
testimony in its investigations, 31 U.S.C. 3733.
After the government has made its initial determination of whether to intervene, the defendants
are served and have 20 days in which to respond, 31 U.S.C. 3730(b)(3). The government, or in its
absence the relator, must prove damages and all of the elements of the asserted violation by a
preponderance of the evidence.119 A defendant, however, may not contest the presence of any
elements of any violation which has been established or conceded against him in parallel criminal
proceedings.120 Although they sue in the name of the United States, relators are bound by the 30-
day deadline for appellate review rather than the 60-day deadline available to the government.121
115 United States ex rel. Sanders v. North American Bus Industries, Inc., 546 F.3d 288, 294 (4th Cir. 2008)(the extension
is only available to the government); United States ex rel. Sikkenga v. Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield, 472 F.3d 702,
722-25 (10th Cir. 2006)(same); United States ex rel. Hyatt v. Northrop Corp., 91 F.3d 1211, 1214-216 (9th Cir.
1996)(the extension is available to both the government and to a relator); see also United States ex rel. Snapp v. Ford
Motor Co., 532 F.3d 496, 509-10 (6th Cir. 2008)(recognizing the split of authority, but finding it unnecessary to decide
the issue).
116 Graham Country Soil & Water Conservation District v. United States ex rel. Wilson, 545 U.S. 409, 421 (2005).
117 United States v. The Baylor University Medical Center, 469 F.3d 263, 267-70 (2d Cir. 2006).
118 31 U.S.C. 3731(c)(“If the Government elects to intervene and proceed with an action brought under 3730(b), the
Government may file its own complaint or amend the complaint of a person who has brought an action under section
3730(b) to clarify or add detail to the claims in which the Government is intervening and to add any additional claims
with respect to which the Government contends it is entitled to relief. For statute of limitations purposes, any such
Government pleading shall relate back to the filing date of the complaint of the person who originally brought the
action, to the extent that the claim of the Government arises out of the conduct, transactions, or occurrences set forth, or
attempted to be set forth, in the prior complaint of that person”).
119 31 U.S.C. 3731(d); United States ex rel. Sikkenga v. Regence Blue Cross Blue Shield, 472 F.3d 702, 724 (10th Cir.
2006).
120 31 U.S.C. 3731(e)(“Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, or the
Federal Rules of Evidence, a final judgment rendered in favor of the United States in any criminal proceeding charging
fraud or false statements, whether upon a verdict after trial or upon a plea of guilty or nolo contendere, shall estop the
(continued...)
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Patent Act (35 U.S.C. 292)
(a) Whoever, without the consent of the patentee, marks upon, or affixes to, or uses in
advertising in connection with anything made, used, offered for sale, or sold by such person
within the United States, or imported by the person into the United States, the name or any
imitation of the name of the patentee, the patent number, or the words “patent,” “patentee,”
or the like, with the intent of counterfeiting or imitating the mark of the patentee, or of
deceiving the public and inducing them to believe that the thing was made, offered for sale,
sold, or imported into the United States by or with the consent of the patentee; or
Whoever marks upon, or affixes to, or uses in advertising in connection with any unpatented
article, the word “patent” or any word or number importing that the same is patented for the
purpose of deceiving the public; or
Whoever marks upon, or affixes to, or uses in advertising in connection with any article, the
words “patent applied for,” “patent pending,” or any word importing that an application for
patent has been made, when no application for patent has been made, or if made, is not
pending, for the purpose of deceiving the public–
Shall be fined not more than $500 for every such offense.
(b) Any person may sue for the penalty, in which event one-half shall go to the person suing
and the other to the use of the United States. 35 U.S.C. 292.
Section 292 is recognized as a qui tam statute.122 The party bringing the action need not be a
victim; it may be prosecuted by anyone who can satisfy constitutional standing requirements.123
In order to prevail under the most commonly prosecuted prongs of the statute, the relator must
establish by a preponderance of the evidence that: “(1) an article was falsely marked or advertised
with the word ‘patent’ or any word or number that imports that the article is patented, (2) the
article so marked or advertised was an unpatented article, and (3) the marking or advertisement
was made with the intent to deceive the public.”124 The first element (falsely marked) may include
conditional statements or marks , e.g., “may be covered by one or more U.S. or foreign pending
or issued patents.”125 Proof the first and third elements (falsely marked and intent to deceive) are
frequently intertwined. Thus, “the fact of misrepresentation coupled with proof that the party
making it had knowledge of its falsity is enough to warrant drawing the inference that there was a
(...continued)
defendant from denying the essential elements of the offense in any action which involves the same transaction as in
the criminal proceeding and which is brought under subsection (a) or (b) of section 3730”).
121 United States ex rel. Eisenstein v. New York, 129 S.Ct. 2230, 2236-237 (2009).
122 Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S. 765, 769 n.1 (2000); Boyd v.
Schildkraut Giftware Corp., 936 F.2d 76, 79 (2d Cir. 1991); Third Party Verification, Inc. v. Signaturelink, Inc., 492
F.Supp.2d 1314, 1326 (M.D.Fla. 2007).
123 Lang v. Pacific Marine and Supply Co., Ltd., 895 F.2d 761, 765 (Fed.Cir. 1990). Standing requirements are
discussed below under Constitutional Concerns.
124 Third Party Verification, Inc. v. Signaturelink, Inc., 492 F.Supp.2d 1314, 1326 (M.D.Fla. 2007); United States
Gypsum Co. v. Pacific Award Metals, Inc., 438 F.Supp.2d 1101, 1105 (N.D.Cal. 2006); DP Wagner Manufacturing,
Inc., v. Pro Patch Systems, Inc., 434 F.Supp.2d 445, 451 (S.D. Tex. 2006); each citing Clontech Labs., Inc. v.
Invitrogen Corp., 406 F.3d 1347, 1352 (Fed.Cir. 2005).
125 Pequignot v. Solo Cup Co., 540 F.Supp.2d 649, 655 (E.D.Va. 2008).
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fraudulent intent.”126 On the other hand, “an intent to deceive the public will not be inferred if the
facts show no more than that the erroneous patent marking was the result of mistake,”
inadvertence, or innocent oversight.127 As for the second element, a product is “unpatented” when
no patent, foreign or domestic, is pending or has been issued for it or for a portion of it; or when
any of the patents asserted on his behalf do not in fact cover it; or when any patent which once
covered it has expired.128
Unlike qui tam actions under the False Claims Act, actions to enforce section 292 are subject to
the general five-year statute of limitations found in 28 U.S.C. 2462.129 Section 292 qui tam
actions differ from those brought under the False Claims Act with respect to the recovery of
attorneys’ fees as well. Section 292 makes no mention of attorneys’ fees, although they may be
available to either party in exceptional cases under the general remedies provisions of 35 U.S.C.
285.130
Indian Protection (25 U.S.C. 201)
All penalties which shall accrue under Title 28 of the Revised Statutes shall be sued for and
recovered in an action in the nature of an action of debt, in the name of the United States,
before any court having jurisdiction of the same, in any State or Territory in which the
defendant shall be arrested or found, the one half to the use of the informer and the other half
to the use of the United States, except when the prosecution shall be first instituted on behalf
of the United States, in which case the whole shall be to their use. 25 U.S.C. 201.
Section 201 dates from 1834 and authorizes qui tam actions for violations of five separate
statutes: (1) unlawful purchase of land from an Indian nation or tribe, 25 U.S.C. 177 (Rev. Stat.
§2116); (2) driving livestock to feed on Indian land, 25 U.S.C. 179 (Rev. Stat. §2117); (3) settling
on or surveying Indian land, 25 U.S.C. 180 (Rev. Stat. §2118); (4) setting up a distillery in Indian
country, 25 U.S.C. 251 (Rev. Stat. §2141); and (5) trading in Indian country without a license, 25
U.S.C. 264 (Rev. Stat. 2133).131
126 Clontech Labs., Inc. v. Invitrogen Corp., 406 F.3d at 1352; United States Gypsum Co. v. Pacific Award Metals, Inc.,
438 F.Supp.2d at 1106.
127 Keystone Manufacturing Co., Inc. v. Jaccard Corp., 394 F.Supp.2d 543, 565 (W.D.N.Y. 2005)(mistake or
inadvertence); Bibow v. American Saw and Manufacturing Co., 490 F.Supp.2d 128, 129 (D.Mass. 2007), citing
Arcadia Machine & Tool, Inc. v. Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc., 786 F.2d 1124, 1125 (Fed.Cir. 1986)(innocent oversight);
DP Wagner Manufacturing, Inc. v.Pro Patch Systems, Inc., 434 F.Supp.2d at 457 (honest mistake); Clontech Labs.,
Inc. v. Invitrogen Corp., 406 F.3d at 1352 (same).
128 Keystone Manufacturing Co., Inc. v. Jaccard Corp., 394 F.Supp.2d at 566 (Ҥ292 does not distinguish between
foreign and domestic patents”); Pequignot v. Solo Cup Co., 540 F.Supp.2d at 653(“[T]he term ‘unpatented article’ in 35
U.S.C. §292(a) is an article unprotected by a patent, and includes an article for which a once valid patent has expired”);
Clontech Labs., Inc. v. Invitrogen Corp., 406 F.3d at 1352(“When the statute refers to an ‘unpatented article’ the statute
means that the article in question is not covered by at least one claim of each patent with which the article is marked”).
129 Arcadia Machine & Tool, Inc. v. Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc., 786 F.2d 1124, 1125 (Fed.Cir. 1986).
130 Stauffer v. Brooks Brothers, Inc., 615 F.Supp.2d 248, 256 (S.D.N.Y. 2009); Deyerle v. Wright Manufacturing Co.,
496 F.2sd 45, 54-55 (6th Cir. 1974).
131 The section applies where Congress established monetary penalties for various prohibitions enacted for the
protection of the Indians; it does not create a qui tam cause of action with respect criminal statutes which come replete
with terms of imprisonment such as the embezzlement provisions of 25 U.S.C. 450d, United States ex rel. Burnette v.
Driving Hawk, 587 F.2d 23, 23-5 (8th Cir. 1978).
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Qui tam actions under section 201 are relatively rare and appear to have arisen most often under
sections 264 (unlicensed trading) and 179 (grazing). In Hall, the section 264 relators’ action
survived a standing challenge,132 but was dismissed for failure to join an indispensible party—the
tribe, which had contracted for gambling equipment and services from an unlicensed supplier.133
In Keith, the relator’s action was dismissed after the court concluded that “bureaucratic
nonfeasance” made it impossible to obtain the required trader’s license.134 Relators were
somewhat more successful in Hornell, where the court upheld recovery of the monetary penalty,
but declined to affirm confiscation of the station wagon that was the object of the unlicensed
sale.135
Section 179 prohibits grazing horses, mules, or cattle on Indian land without permission and sets
the penalty at $1 per head. The circuits are divided over the question of whether the Secretary of
the Interior may by regulation set the penalty at $1 per head for each day of violation.136 Federal
district courts have jurisdiction exclusive of the states for enforcement of the penalties under
section 179, but they may abstain from exercising jurisdiction in favor of enforcement in a tribal
court of jurisdiction.137
There may be some question whether the monetary penalty established in section 177 may be
enforced by a qui tam action under section 201. Section 201 applies to “penalties which shall
accrue under Title 28 of the Revised Statutes,”(i.e., Rev. Stat. §§2039-2157). Section 177 appears
in Title 28 of the Revised Statutes as section 2116. Thus, on its face, section 201 permits a qui
tam action to recover the penalties accruing under section 177.
In Harlan, however, the Eighth Circuit stated in dicta that “25 U.S.C. §177 appears to deal
directly with cases where, as here, a person attempts to lease tribal lands without express approval
of the federal government.... The statute makes violators subject to a fine of $1,000, but has no
provision entitling relators to bring actions under it. See James v. Watt, 716 F.2d 71 (1st Cir.
1983).”138 The issue in Harlan was whether the qui tam provisions then found in 25 U.S.C. 81,
relating to contracts for services which required government approval, extended to sharecrop
agreements. The court referred to section 177 “simply ... to demonstrate that a broad and general
policy to oversee all contracts by Indians need not be accomplished though 25 U.S.C. §81 alone.”
The James case, which the court cites, held that an individual tribal member, suing as a victim of
a violation of section 177, may only do so as a representative of his tribe and not on his own
behalf.139 It says nothing of whether he may do so on behalf of the United States qui tam.
132 United States ex rel. Hall v. Tribal Development Corp., 49 F.3d 1208, 1216 (7th Cir. 1995).
133 United States ex rel. Hall v. Tribal Development Corp., 100 F.3d 476, 478 (7th Cir. 1996).
134 United States ex rel. Keith v. Sioux Nation Shopping Center, 634 F.2d 401, 403 (8th Cir. 1980).
135 United States ex rel. Hornell v. One 1976 Chevrolet Station Wagon, 585 F.2d 978, 980-81 (10th Cir. 1978).
136 United States ex rel. Whitehorse v. Briggs, 555 F.2d 283, 288 (10th Cir. 1977)(to “permit a cow to trespass and graze
on Indian land for a day, a month, a year, or forever, upon the payment of a statutory penalty in the amount of $1 ...
would completely defeat the intent of, and purpose behind, the statute”); United States ex rel. Chase v. Wald, 557 F.2d
157, 161 (8th Cir. 1977)(the Secretary has no authority to increase the statutory penalty).
137 United States v. Plainbull, 957 F.2d 724, 726-28 (9th Cir. 1992).
138 United States ex rel. Harlan v. Bacon, 21 F.3d 209, 212 (1994)(emphasis added).
139 James v. Watt, 716 F.2d 71, 72 (1st Cir. 1983)(emphasis in the original)(“this court has held that the INA [Indian
Nonintercourse Act, 25 U.S.C. 177] was designed to protect the land rights only of tribes; that the INA therefore
granted a cause of action to tribes; and that individual Indians could not assert INA rights on their own behalf”).
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The application of section 201 to the penalties under section 177 seems clear on its face, but the
contrary statement in Harlan seems equally clear.
Constitutional Concerns
Qui tam evokes constitutional issues of two classes. First, to what extent may qui tam defendants
claim the constitutional protections available to defendants in criminal cases? Second, is qui tam
compatible with the Constitution’s allocation of powers among the three branches of government?
At first glance, the first question seems the least troubling. The rights available in criminal
proceedings exist precisely because the proceedings are criminal. The Sixth Amendment rights—
the right to counsel; to call and confront witnesses; to informed of the nature of the charges
against him; to trial in the place where the offense occurred; and to a speedy and public trial
before an impartial jury—apply only to “the accused” in criminal proceedings.140 Thus, they are
inapplicable to federal qui tam proceedings which are civil in nature.141 Rights found elsewhere in
the Constitution, however, often turn upon whether the government’s action may be or must be
considered punitive. Here the answers are bit less clear.
Double Jeopardy
For example, in the context of the False Claims Act, it was once thought that the Fifth
Amendment’s double jeopardy clause applied to “actions intended to authorize criminal
punishment to vindicate public justice” but not to “civil, remedial actions brought primarily to
protect the government from financial loss,” United States ex rel. Marcus v. Hess, 317 U.S. 537,
548, 549 (1943). It was further thought that a legislatively established civil remedy should not be
considered a criminal penalty for double jeopardy purposes unless its purpose or effect was so
excessive as to belie its civil designation, Rex Trailer Co. v. United States, 350 U.S. 148, 154
(1956).
But then the Court seemed to make a rule of the exception when it declared that, “under the
Double Jeopardy Clause a defendant who already has been punished in a criminal prosecution
may not be subjected to an additional civil sanction to the extent that the second sanction may not
fairly be characterized as remedial, but only as a deterrent or retribution,” United States v. Halper,
490 U.S. 435, 448-49 (1989).142 Nine years later, however, the Court withdrew from the broad
implications of Halper whose analysis it characterized as “ill considered,” Hudson v. United
States, 522 U.S. 93, 101 (1997). The appropriate test, the Court declared,143 is one exemplified in
its pre-Halper case law:
140 U.S. Const. Amend. VI (“In all criminal proceedings, the accused shall enjoy the right ... ”).
141 E.g., 31 U.S.C. 3730(a)(“ ... The Attorney General finds that a person has violated or is violating section 3729, the
Attorney General may bring a civil action ... ); 31 U.S.C. 3730(b)(1)(“A person may bring a civil action for a violation
of section 3729 for the person and for the United States Government ... “); 35 U.S.C. 292(b)(“Any person may sue for
the penalty ... ”).
142 Yet the Court observed in a footnote, “We express no opinion as to whether a qui tam action, such as the one in
Hess, is properly characterized as a suit between private parties for the purpose of this rule,” Id. at 451 n.10.
143 522 U.S. at 96 (“We hold that the Double Jeopardy Clause of the Fifth Amendment is not a bar to the later criminal
prosecution because the administrative proceedings were civil, not criminal. Our reasons for so holding in large part
disavow the method of analysis used in United States v. Halper. 490 U.S. 435, 448 (1989), and reaffirm the previously
established rule exemplified in United States v. Ward, 448 U.S. 242, 248-249 (1980)”).
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Whether Congress, in establishing the penalizing mechanism, indicate[] either expressly or
impliedly a preference for one label or the other. Second, where Congress has indicated an
intention to establish a civil penalty, [was] the statutory scheme ... so punitive either in
purpose or effect as to negate that intention. In regard to this latter inquiry, we have noted
that only the clearest proof could suffice to establish the unconstitutionality of a statute on
such a ground.144
The Court has looked to the due process standards listed in Kennedy v. Mendoza-Martinez, 372
U.S. 144, 168-69 (1963), when defendants seek to satisfy the daunting “clearest proof” test.145
Although Hudson was not a qui tam case, later lower federal court qui tam cases consider it
dispositive.146
Excessive Fines
The Supreme Court implied in Hudson that the problems which drove its Halper analysis might
more appropriately be judged by Eighth Amendment excessive fines standards.147 The Eighth
Amendment states that “[e]xcessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor
cruel and unusual punishments inflicted,” U.S. Const. Amend. VIII. In other contexts, the
Supreme Court has determined that the excessive fines clause “does not constrain an award of
money damages in a civil suit when the government neither has prosecuted the action nor has any
right to receive a share of the damages awarded.”148 The clause does apply to “the government’s
power to extract payments ... as punishment for some offense.”149 The critical question is not
whether the procedure for extracting the payment is classified as civil or criminal or whether it
serves some additional remedial purposes; if the payment constitutes punishment, it is a “fine”
144 United States v. Ward, 448 U.S. at 248-49 (internal citations and quotation marks omitted).
145 United States v. Hudson, 522 U.S. at 99 (internal citations and quotations omitted)(“Even in those cases where the
legislature has indicated an intention to establish a civil penalty, we have inquired further whether the statutory scheme
was so punitive either in purpose or effect as to transform what was clearly intended as a civil remedy into a criminal
penalty. In making this latter determination, the factors listed in Kennedy v. Mendoza-Martinez provide useful
guideposts, including: (1) whether the sanction involves an affirmative disability or restraint; (2) whether it has
historically been regarded as a punishment; (3) whether it comes into play only on a finding of scienter; (4) whether its
operation will promote the traditional aims of punishment—retribution and deterrence; (5) whether the behavior to
which it applies is already a crime; (6) whether an alternative purpose to which it may rationally be connected is
assignable for it; and (7) whether it appears excessive in relation to the alternative purpose assigned”); see also United
States v. Ward, 448 U.S. at 249.
146 United States v. Rogan, 517 F.3d 449, (7th Cir. 2008)(“We know from Hudson v. United States ... that penalties
under the False Claims Act are not criminal punishment for the purposes of the Double Jeopardy Clause in the Fifth
Amendment”); see also United States v. Lumanna, 114 F.Supp.2d 193, 197 (W.D.N.Y. 2000).
147 522 U.S. at 102-103.
148 Browning-Ferris Industries v. Kelco Disposal, 492 U.S. 257, 264 (1989)(holding that the excessive fines clause did
not apply to a treble damage antitrust award). The Court “left open the question whether a qui tam action, in which a
private party brings suit in the name of the United States and shares in any award of damages, would implicate ... the
Eighth Amendment’s Excessive Fines Clause,” Id. at 275-76 n. 21.
149 Austin v. United States, 509 U.S.602, 609-10 (1993).
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and as a general matter may not be excessive.150 A fine is excessive, in the eyes of the Court, “if it
is grossly disproportionate to the gravity of the defendant’s offense.”151
In the qui tam context, subsequent lower court reported cases ordinarily treat False Claims Act
qui tam penalties as punishment and consequently subject to excessive fines clause analysis.152
They have generally concluded, however, that the fines imposed in the cases before them were
not excessive for Eighth Amendment purposes.153
Due Process
Two Supreme Court cases suggest that permitting individuals with a personal interest to prosecute
in the name of the United States may present due process issues. In Marshall v. Jerrico, Inc., the
Court rejected the argument that an administrative agency’s receipt of civil penalties which it
assessed and collected posed a due process risk of biased prosecution.154 In the course of its
opinion, however, the Court noted that it “need not say with precision what limits there may be on
a financial or personal interest of one who performs a prosecutorial function. In particular, we
need not say whether different considerations might be held to apply if the alleged biasing
influence contributed to prosecutions against particular persons, rather than to a general
zealousness in the enforcement process.”155 That fact pattern surfaced in Young v. United States ex
rel. Vuitton et Fils S.A., but the issue splintered the Court.
Young and Vuitton were engaged in trademark litigation which had resulted in the issuance of an
order enjoining Young from manufacturing or distributing counterfeit versions of Vuitton’s
product line.156 Upon a showing of probable cause to believe that Young had violated the
injunction, the court appointed Vuitton’s lawyers to prosecute the criminal contempt.157 Five
150 Id. at 610. Once again, however, the Court declined to resolve the question of the clause’s application to qui tam
penalties, “In Browning-Ferris, we left open the question whether the Excessive Fines Clause applies to qui tam actions
in which a private party brings suit in the name of the United States and shares in the proceeds ... Because the instant
suit was prosecuted by the United States and because Austin’s property was forfeited to the United States, we have no
occasion to address that question here,” Id. at 607 n.3.
151 United States v. Bajakajian, 524 U.S. 321, 334 (1998).
152 United States v. Bourseau, 531 F.3d 1159, 1173-174 (9th Cir. 2008); United States v. Mackby, 339 F.3d 1013, 1016
(9th Cir. 2003); United States ex rel. Tyson v. Amerigroup Illinois, Inc., 488 F.Supp.2d 719, 743-45 (N.D.Ill. 2007);
United States v. Eghbal, 475 F.Supp.2d 1008, 1016-19 (C.D.Cal. 2007); United States v. Byrd, 100 F.Supp.2d 342,
344-45 (E.D.N.C. 2000); but see United States v. Rogan, 517 F.3d 449, 453-54 (7th Cir. 2007)(finding it unnecessary to
resolve the issue and indicating that the results of double jeopardy and excessive fines analysis should be the same, but
noting that it considers the law in the area is “unsettled”).
153 United States v. Bourseau, 531 F.3d at 1173-174 ($15.6 million Medicare False Claim Act penalty was not
excessive in light of the harm to the U.S. Treasury and to the integrity of the Medicare program); United States v.
Mackby, 339 F.3d at 1019 ($729,454.92 Medicare False Claims Act judgment was not excessive in light of the
defendant’s culpability and the harm caused by the offense); United States ex rel. Tyson v. Amerigroup Illinois, Inc.,
488 F.Supp.2d 719, 743-45 (N.D.Ill. 2007)($334 million Medicaid False Claims Act penalty was not excessive in light
of the fact that the statute permitted a penalty of $524 million); United States v. Eghbal, 475 F.Supp.2d at 1016-19
($5.851 million in mortgage fraud False Claims Act damages and penalties was not excessive in light of the
defendant’s culpability, the seriousness of the offense, and the harm caused); United States v. Byrd, 100 F.Supp.2d at
344-55 ($1.575 million food stamp False Claims Act penalty was not excessive in light of the fact that a penalty of
$2.895 million was authorized under the statute).
154 Marshall v. Jerrico, Inc., 446 U.S. 238, 252 (1980).
155 Id. at 250 n. 12 and accompanying text.
156 Young v. United States ex rel. Vuitton et Fils S.A., 481 U.S. 787, 790-91 (1987).
157 Id. at 791-92.
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members of the Supreme Court agreed that Young’s subsequent conviction should be overturned
because, “counsel for a party that is the beneficiary of a court order may not be appointed as
prosecutor in a contempt action alleging a violation of that order.”158 Four members of the Court
felt this was so because the appointment of an interested prosecutor constituted error which
undermined confidence in the integrity of the criminal proceeding.159 One of the four went so far
as to assert that the failure to appoint a disinterested prosecutor constituted a due process
violation.160 A fifth Justice merely concurred in the result, because he felt that the lower court’s
appointment of a prosecutor—disinterested or not—was invalid on separation of powers
grounds.161
Lower federal courts thereafter confronted with due process challenges to qui tam have rejected
them based on the fact that relators press their claims as private civil litigants and thus do not
exercise government power subject to due process clause restrictions on criminal prosecutions.162
Separation of Powers
Is qui tam legislation compatible with the Constitution’s allocation of powers among the three
branches? The Constitution allocates federal governmental authority among three coordinated
branches. It vests all legislative powers in Congress, executive power in the President, and the
judicial power of the United States in the federal courts.163 It declares that Congress shall have the
power to make all laws, necessary and proper, for carrying into execution its own powers and
those of the executive and judicial branches.164 It empowers Congress to remove by impeachment
the President, the Vice President, and any civil officer of the United States for treason, bribery, or
other high crimes and misdemeanors.165 It requires the advice and consent of the Senate for the
appointment of ambassadors, public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all
other officers of the United States (except for those inferior officers whose appointment has been
otherwise provided for by law).166 It instructs the President “to take care that the laws be
faithfully executed.”167
The Constitution authorizes the President to recommend legislation to Congress and to call
Congress into extraordinary session.168 Legislation may not become law until presented to the
President for his approval, and in the case of his disapproval only upon the vote of a super
158 Id. at 809.
159 Id. at 810.
160 Id. at 814-15 (Blackmun, J., concurring).
161 Id. at 815 (Scalia, J., concurring in the judgment).
162 United States ex rel. Kelly v. Boeing Co., 9 F.3d 743, 760 (9th Cir. 1993); accord United States ex rel. Phillips v.
Pediatric Services of America, Inc., 123 F.Supp.2d 990, 994-95 (W.D.N.C. 2000); United States ex rel. Fallon v.
Accundyne Corp., 921 F.Supp. 611, 623-24 (W.D.Wis 1995); United States ex rel. Stillwell v. Hughes Helicopters, Inc.,
714 F.Supp. 1084, 1088 n.4 (C.D.Cal. 1989); but see Friedman v. Rite Aid Corp., 152 F.Supp.2d 766, 771 (E.D.Pa.
2001)(finding due process inapplicable because relators merely receive “an appropriate incentive and reward for aiding
the Government”).
163 U.S. Const. Art. I, §1; Art. II, §1; and Art. III, respectively.
164 U.S. Const. Art. I, §8, cl. 18.
165 U.S. Const. Art. II, §4.
166 U.S. Const. Art. II, §2, cl. 2. During a recess of the Senate, the President may fill a vacancy in office with a
commission which expires at the end of the next session, U.S. Const. Art. II, §2, cl. 3.
167 U.S. Const,. Art. II, §3.
168 Id.
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majority in each House.169 The Constitution says little about how the President may or must
exercise the executive authority of the United States. It names the President commander in chief
of the armed forces.170 It empowers the President to nominate, and with Senate advice and
consent to appoint, ambassadors, public ministers, consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all
other officers of the United States (except for those inferior officers whose appointment has been
otherwise provided for by law).171 It permits the President to grant pardons and reprieves with
respect to offenses against the United States and to require executive department heads to provide
him with written opinions on matters relevant to their duties.172 It authorizes the President to
receive ambassadors and other public ministers.173 Finally, the Constitution defines those cases
and controversies to which the judicial power of the United States extends.174
This “system of separation of powers and checks and balances ... was regarded by the Framers as
a self-executing safeguard against the encroachment or aggrandizement of one branch at the
expense of the other[s].”175 Yet, in this interwoven fabric of governmental authority, the Framers
realized that “[w]hile the Constitution diffuses power the better to secure liberty, it also
contemplates that practice will integrate the dispersed powers into a workable government. It
enjoins upon its branches separateness but interdependence, autonomy but reciprocity.”176
Commentators and litigants have questioned whether the qui tam is at odds with these basic
constitutional principles.177 Their concerns are three. First, the Constitution grants the federal
courts the judicial power over “cases and controversies.” This is thought to require at least two
parties with conflicting interests, presented in a context suitable for judicial resolution, i.e.,
standing in a case or controversy. Yet, relators come to court with no interest of their own, only a
contingent personal interest.178 Second, the Constitution instructs the President to see that the
169 U.S. Const. Art. I, §7, cl. 2.
170 U.S. Const. Art. II, §2, cl. 1.
171 U.S. Const. Art. II, §2, cl. 2. During a recess of the Senate, the President may fill vacancies in office by
commissions which expire at the end of the next session, U.S. Const. Art. II, §2, cl. 3.
172 U.S. Const. Art. II, §2, cl. 1.
173 U.S. Const. Art. II, §3.
174 U.S. Const. Art. III, §2.
175 Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority v. Citizens for the Abatement of Aircraft Noise, Inc., 501 U.S. 252, 273,
quoting Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 122 (1976).
176 United States v. Mistretta, 488 U.S. 361, 381 (1989), quoting Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer, 343 U.S.
579, 635 (Jackson, J., concurring); see also, Morrison v. Olson, 487 U.S. 654, 693-94 (1988)(“Time and again we have
reaffirmed the importance in our constitutional scheme of the separation of governmental powers into the three
coordinate branches ... We have not hesitated to invalidate provisions of law which violate this principle. On the other
hand, we have never held that the Constitution requires that the three branches of government operate with absolute
independence”).
177 Caminker, The Constitutionality of Qui Tam Actions, 99 YALE LAW JOURNAL 341 (1989); The Constitutionality of
the False Claims Act’s Qui Tam Provisions, 16 HARVARD JOURNAL OF LAW & PUBLIC POLICY 701 (1993); Edgar,
“Missing the Analytical Boat”: The Unconstitutionality of the Qui Tam Provisions of the False Claims Act, 27 IDAHO
LAW REVIEW 319 (1990); 1001 Attorneys General: Executive-Employee Qui Tam Suits and the Constitution, 62
GEORGE WASHINGTON LAW REVIEW 609 (1993); but see Bales, A Constitutional Defense of Qui Tam, 2001 WISCONSIN
LAW REVIEW 381.
178 “The constitutional cornerstone of the modern doctrine of standing is injury in fact, and without this a party cannot
invoke the power of the federal courts. Since by definition a qui tam plaintiff has no injury in fact in a False Claims
suit, then the qui tam provisions of the Act are unconstitutional under Article III’s requirements of ‘cases’ and
‘controversies,’” Missing the Analytical Boat”: The Unconstitutionality of the Qui Tam Provisions of the False Claims
Act, 27 IDAHO LAW REVIEW 319, 345 (1990).
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laws are faithfully executed. Yet, without his approval or unrestricted control, relators may initiate
and prosecute litigation.179 Third, the President is vested with the authority to appoint officers of
the United States and, with the courts and heads of departments, to appoint inferior officers. Yet,
relators, who engage in activities otherwise reserved to officers and inferior officers of the United
States, are appointed neither by the President, the courts, nor by the head of any department.180
Each of the constitutional challenges to the False Claims Act’s qui tam provisions faces an
apparent hurdle. Qui tam statutes were fairly common at the time of the drafting of the
Constitution. Qui tam statutes were enacted by the early Congresses, populated by men
responsible for drafting and ratifying the new Constitution. Although enactment in an early
Congress is hardly a sure mark of constitutionality,181 action there “provides contemporaneous
and weighty evidence of the Constitution’s meaning.”182 Thus, critics face the problem of
explaining how a process, which the Framers did not consider unconstitutional, should now be so
construed.
Standing
History plays a significant role in determining whether standing exists. Standing requires (1) a
concrete injury to the plaintiff’s interest, (2) attributable to the defendant, (3) and amenable to
judicial relief.183 When it put standing challenges to rest in Vermont Agency of Natural Resources
v. United States ex rel. Stevens, the Supreme Court observed that:
[T]he long tradition of qui tam actions in England and the American colonies ... is
particularly relevant to the constitutional standing inquiry since ... Article III’s restriction of
the judicial power to “Cases” and “Controversies” is properly understood to mean “cases and
controversies of the sort traditionally amenable to, and resolved by, the judicial process.”184
On the more perplexing matter of the relator’s injury, the Stevens Court found the injury to the
United States sufficient to establish False Claims Act relator standing. With respect to the
179 “Article II gives the President—and only the President—the power and duty to ‘take Care that the Laws be
faithfully executed.’ Although Morrison [Morrison v. Olson, 487 U.S. 654 (1988)] held that Congress can place certain
executive functions in the hands of persons who are not members of the Executive Branch, the Court has never held
that Congress may divest the Executive of the power to initiate a lawsuit to vindicate the United States’ interest. In fact,
a line of cases suggests that this power to initiate lawsuits is a special and inherently executive function.... The FCA’s
qui tam provision interest with the Executive’s ‘initiation power.’ Once a relator files an action under Section 3730(b),
that action will proceed regardless of whether the government chooses to intervene,” Fight for Your Right to Litigate:
Qui Tam, Article II, and the President, 49 STANFORD LAW REVIEW 853, 868, 872 (1997).
180 “When one combines Buckley’s [Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1 (1976)] holding that only properly appointed officers
can litigate on behalf of the United States with Fretag’s [Fretag v. Commission, 501 U.S. 868 (1991)] holding that
Congressional diffusion of the appointment power—and not only aggrandizement—can violate the Appointments
Clause, the conclusion is simple: It is unconstitutional for qui tam relators to enforce the FCA on behalf of the United
States government because they have not been properly appointed to do so,” The Constitutionality of the False Claims
Act’s Qui Tam Provision, 16 HARVARD JOURNAL OF LAW & PUBLIC POLICY 701, 743 (1993).
181 Recall that the First Congress passed the Judiciary Act of 1789, section 13 of which unconstitutionally endeavored
to enlarge the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court, Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. (1 Cranch) 137, 172-80 (1803).
182 Bowsher v. Synar, 478 U.S. 714, 723 (1986), citing Marsh v. Chambers, 463 U.S. 783, 790 (1983).
183 Friends of Earth, Inc. v. Laidlaw Environmental Services (TOC), Inc., 528 U.S. 167, 180-81 (2000), citing Lujan v.
Defenders of Wildlife, 504 U.S. 555, 560-61 (1992)(“to satisfy Article III’s standing requirements, a plaintiff must
show (1) it has suffered an injury in fact that is (a) concrete and particularized and (b) actual or imminent, not
conjectural or hypothetical; (2) the injury is fairly traceable to the challenged action of the defendant; and (3) it is
likely, as opposed to merely speculative, that the injury will be redressed by a favorable decision”).
184 Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S. 765, 774 (2000), quoting Steel Co.
v. Citizens for a Better Environment, 523 U.S. 83, 102 (1998).
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government’s share of the fruits of successful litigation, the Court found standing in the relator as
an agent of the defrauded United States.185 With respect to the relator’s share, it considered him
the assignee of that portion of the interest of the United States.186
Relator standing is in greater doubt in cases where tangible injury to the United States is less
obvious. In the case of the false marking section of the Patent Act, at least one court has held that
the relator must show either an injury to himself or an injury to the United States for which he
might be the agent/assignee, i.e., “an actual or imminent injury in fact to competition, to the
United States economy, or [to] the public that could be assigned to him as a qui tam plaintiff or be
vindicated through this litigation.”187
The Stevens Court resolved the issue of qui tam standing, but it “express[ed] no view on the
question of whether qui tam suits violate Article II, in particular the Appointments Clause of §2
and the ‘take Care’ Clause of §3,” Id. at 778 n.8.
Appointments clause
. . . [The President] shall nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate,
shall appoint Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme
Court, and all other Officers of the United States, whose Appointments are not herein
otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress may by
Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, as they think proper, in the President
alone, in the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments. U.S. Const. Art. II, §2, cl. 2.
The appointments clause issue in qui tam cases flows from apparently contradictory language in
two Supreme Court cases. In the more recent, Buckley v. Valeo, the Court seemed to conclude that
only officers appointed under Article II could be vested with conducting civil litigation on behalf
of the United States:
We hold that these provisions of the Act, vesting in the Commission primary responsibility
for conducting civil litigation in the courts of the United States for vindicating public rights,
violate Art. II, §2, cl. 2, of the Constitution. Such functions may be discharged only by
persons who are “Officers of the United States” within the language of that section.188
Yet, earlier Court decisions suggested that the appointments clause applied only to those
purported to hold an “office of the United States,” and that Congress might authorize the
performance of services in the name of the United States by those who did so without the
185 Id. at 771-72 (“It is beyond doubt that the complaint asserts any injury to the United States.... It would perhaps
suffice to say that the relator here is simply the statutorily designated agent of the United States, in whose name ... the
suit is brought—and that the relator’s bounty is simply the fee he receives out of the United States’ recovery.... This
analysis is precluded, however, by the fact that the statute gives the relator himself an interest in the lawsuit ... For the
portion of the recovery retained by the relator, therefore, some explanation of standing other than agency for the
Government must be identified”).
186 Id. at 773 (“We believe, however, that adequate basis for the relator’s suit for his bounty is to be found in the
doctrine that the assignee of a claim has standing to assert the injury in fact suffered by the assignor. The FCA can
reasonably be regarded as effecting a partial assignment of the Government’s damages claim”).
187 Stauffer v. Brooks Brothers, Inc., 615 F.Supp.2d 248, 255 (S.D.N.Y. 2009).
188 Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 140 (1976).
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attributes of office, selected other than under Article II. The line begins with United States v.
Hartwell which found that a Treasury Department clerk was an officer of the United States for
purposes of an embezzlement statute. The Court noted that the defendant had been appointed in a
manner consistent with Article II to a position that “embraced the ideas of tenure, duration,
emolument, and duties” and for which the duties were continuing and permanent rather than
occasional or temporary.189
The second case, United States v. Germaine, likewise involved a penal statute applicable to
“officers of the United States.” The Court concluded that the defendant, a surgeon paid to conduct
and report on the results of examinations of applicants and recipients of federal pensions, was not
an officer of the United States.190 The Court supported its view by noting that the defendant filled
no office; his duties were occasional and intermittent; he kept no place of business for the public
use; he gave no bond; he took no oath; he was but an agent employed by the Commissioner of
Pensions to obtain information needed for the performance of the Commissioner’s duties.191
The Court used the same mode of analysis in Auffmordt v. Heden, when it concluded that
appraisers called upon in the event of a customs dispute were not officers of the United States and
consequently their selection other than under the Article II formula did not invalidate their
efforts.192
The Court in Buckley distinguished rather than repudiated Germaine and Affmordt, but it did so in
manner that does not necessarily resolve the qui tam issue:
[The term] “Officers of the United States” does not include all employees of the United
States, but there is no claim made that the Commissioners are employees of the United States
rather than officers. Employees are lesser functionaries subordinate to officers of the United
States, see Auffmordt v. Hedden, 137 U.S. 310, 327 (1890); United States v. Germaine,
supra, whereas the Commissioners, appointed for a statutory term, are not subject to the
control or direction of any other executive, judicial, or legislative authority.193
The Court later affirmed the Buckley assertion that only officers appointed in conformity with
Article II could “exercis[e] significant authority pursuant to the laws of the United States.”194
Yet in Freytag, it acknowledged the existence of various classes empowered other than by Article
II appointment who performed services in the name of the United States. There it distinguished
Tax Court special trial judges (inferior officers) from special masters (not officers) along the lines
suggested in Germaine rather than based on a relative degree of independence mentioned in
Buckley:
The office of special trial judge is established by Law, and the duties, salary, and means of
appointment for that office are specified by statute. These characteristics distinguish special
189 United States v. Hartwell, 73 (6 Wall.) 385, 393-4 (1867).
190 United States v. Germaine, 99 U.S. 508 (1878).
191 Id. at 511-12.
192 Auffmordt v. Hedden, 137 U.S. 310, 327 (1890)(His position is without tenure, duration, continuing emolument, or
continuous duties, and he acts only occasionally and temporarily).
193 Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. at 126 n.162 (parallel citations omitted).
194 Freytag v. Commissioner, 501 U.S. 868, 881 (1991), quoting Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. at 126.
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trial judges from special masters, who are hired by Article III courts on a temporary, episodic
basis, whose positions are not established by law, and whose duties and functions are not
delineated in a statute. Furthermore, special trial judges perform more than ministerial tasks.
... [T]he special trial judges exercise significant discretion. Freytag v. Commissioner, 501
U.S. at 881-82 (internal citations omitted).
Although the Court has thus far “express[ed] no view on the question of whether qui tam suits
violate Article II, in particular the Appointments Clause of §2,”195 the lower federal courts
generally see no appointments clause impediments, because they do not consider qui tam relators
officers of the United States:
The procedural requirements of the Appointments Clause only apply to the appointment of
officers. Thus, the threshold question that we face is whether qui tam relators are “officers”
for purposes of Article II. We conclude that they are not; qui tam relators do not serve in any
office of the United States. There is no legislatively created office of informer or relator
under the FCA. Relators are not entitled to the benefits of officeholders, such as drawing a
government salary. And they are not subject to the requirement, noted long ago by the
Supreme Court, that the definition of an officer “embraces the ideas of tenure, duration,
emolument, and duties, and the latter were continuing and permanent, not occasional or
temporary.” United States v. Germaine, 99 U.S. 508, 511-12 (1878); see also Auffmordt v.
Hedden, 137 U.S. 310, 327 (1890).196
Take care
Unlike the appointments clause, the take care clause does not vest authority in the President.
Instead, it imposes a responsibility upon him. The Framers, however, allocated powers among the
branches so as to prevent Congress or the courts from undermining or unduly interfering with the
President’s ability to perform his constitutional duties, including the duty to take care to see that
the laws are faithfully executed.197 Morrison v. Olson presents a question perhaps most closely
analogous to the one of whether qui tam statutes undermine or unduly interfere with the
President’s ability to fulfill his responsibilities under the take care clause. The case involved the
constitutionality of the independent counsel provisions of the Ethics in Government Act.198 The
195 Vermont Agency of Natural Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S. 765, 778 n.8 (2000).
196 United States ex rel. Stone v. Rockwell International Corp., 282 F.3d 787, 805 (10th Cir. 2002)(parallel citations
omitted); Riley v. St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, 252 F.3d 749, 757-58 (5th Cir. 2001)(en banc)(“Supreme Court
precedent has established that the constitutional definition of an ‘officer’ encompasses, at a minimum, a continuing and
formalized relationship of employment with the United States Government.... There is no such relationship with regard
to qui tam relators”); United States ex rel. Taxpayers Against Fraud v. General Electric Co., 41 F.3d 1032, 1041 (6th
Cir. 1995); see also United States ex rel. Kelly v. Boeing Co., 9 F.3d 743, 758 (9th Cir. 1993)(“The appropriate
questions in this case, therefore, are whether qui tam relators exercise ‘significant authority’ under the FCA, and
whether the FCA vests in relators ‘primary responsibility’ for enforcing the Act by litigating in the federal courts. Our
answers to these questions follow logically from our determination ... that the qui tam provisions do not violate the
separation of powers principle. We have concluded that the Executive Branch retains ‘sufficient control’ of relators
such that their exercise of authority to sue on behalf of the Untied States does not ‘impermissibly undermine’ executive
functions. In keeping with that conclusion, we find it impossible to characterize the authority exercised by relators as so
‘significant’ that it must only be exercised by officers appointed in the manner which Article II, §2, cl.2 prescribes”).
197 Morrison v. Olson, 487 U.S. 654, 695-96 (1988); cf., Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. Schor, 478 U.S.
833, 856-57 (1986).
198 Morrison v. Olson, 487 U.S. at 659-60.
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statute permitted judicial appointment of a special prosecutor (independent counsel) under limited
circumstances to investigate and in some instances to criminally prosecute senior executive
branch officials.199
It was suggested that the Act impermissibly “reduc[ed] the President’s ability to control the
prosecutorial powers wielded by the independent counsel,” both specifically when it precluded
removal of the special prosecutor except for cause and as a general matter.200 The Court
disagreed. It began by noting that the Constitution’s “system of separation of powers and checks
and balances” was crafted “as a self-executing safe-guard against the encroachment or
aggrandizement of one branch at the expense of the other.”201 It found that the Act presented no
such threat.202 The Court then ran through an abbreviated check list of features which might be
said to restrict the Executive’s prosecutorial control as well as those which appeared to re-enforce
his control.
It acknowledged that under the Act the President’s agent, the Attorney General: (1) did not select
the special prosecutor; (2) did not define the scope of the special prosecutor’s inquiry; and (3)
could not remove the special prosecutor without cause.203 On the other hand, (1) a special
prosecutor could be selected only upon the Attorney General’s unreviewable request; (2) the court
defined the special prosecutor’s scope of authority based upon the facts contained in that request;
and (3) the Attorney General might remove the special prosecutor for cause.204 All of which
indicated to the Court that “the Act give[s] the Executive Branch sufficient control over the
independent counsel to ensure that the President is able to perform his constitutionally assigned
duties.”
Lower court False Claims Act qui tam cases decided in Morrison’s shadow generally reached the
same conclusion—the False Claims Act affords the Executive Branch sufficient control to turn
aside a take care clause challenge—although they often concede that the control factors of the
two were not the same.205
199 Id., citing 28 U.S.C. 591-599 (1982 ed., Supp. V).
200 Morrison v. Olson, 487 U.S. at 685.
201 Id. at 693, quoting Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 123 (1976).
202 Morrison v. Olson, 487 U.S. at 694-95.
203 Id. at 695-96.
204 Id. at 696.
205 United States ex rel. Stone v. Rockwell International Corp., 282 F.3d 787, 805-807 (10th Cir. 2002); Riley v. St.
Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, 252 F.3d 749, 757 (5th Cir. 2001)(en banc)(“Any intrusion by the qui tam relator in the
Executive’s Article II power is comparatively modest, especially given the control mechanisms inherent in the FCA to
mitigate such an intrusion and the civil context in which qui tam suits are pursued. Hence, the qui tam portions of the
FCA do not violate the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers by impinging upon the Executive’s
constitutional duty to take care that the laws are faithfully executed under Article II of the Constitution”); United States
ex rel. Taxpayers Against Fraud v. General Electric Co., 41 F.3d 1032, 1041 (6th Cir. 1995); United States ex rel. Kelly
v. Boeing Co., 9 F.3d 743, 757 (9th Cir. 1993)(“Taken as a whole, and considering the removal issue in particular, the
FCA affords the Executive Branch a degree of control over qui tam relators that is not distinguishable from the degree
of control the Morrison Court found the Executive Branch exercises over independent counsels”); United States ex rel.
K & R Limited Partnership v. Massachusetts Housing Finance Agency, 154 F.Supp.2d 19, 26 (D.D.C. 2001); United
States ex rel. Phillips v. Pediatric Services of American, Inc., 123 F.Supp.2d 990, 992-93 (W.D.N.C. 2000)(“However,
the Supreme Court did not intend the analysis in Morrison to serve as an unalterable list of the minimum control
elements necessary for sustaining all acts implicating the Take Care Clause. On the contrary, by twice stating that the
proper inquiry was to take the act as a whole, Morrison instructs us to compare the qui tam provisions as a whole to the
independent counsel provisions as a whole”); United States ex rel. Chandler v. Hektoen Institute, 35 F.Supp.2d 1078,
1081-82 (N.D.Ill. 1999); United States ex rel. Givler v. Smith, 775 F.Supp. 172, 178 (E.D.Pa. 1991)(“FCA amendments
(continued...)
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Appendix.
False Claims Act (Text)
False Claims Act (Text)
31 U.S.C. 3729
(a) Liability for certain acts.–
(1) In general.– Subject to paragraph (2), any person who –
(A) knowingly presents, or causes to be presented, a false or fraudulent claim for payment or
approval;
(B) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement material to a
false or fraudulent claim;
(C) conspires to commit a violation of subparagraph (A), (B), (D), (E), (F), or (G);
(D) has possession, custody, or control of property or money used, or to be used, by the Government
and knowingly delivers, or causes to be delivered, less than all of that money or property;
(E) is authorized to make or deliver a document certifying receipt of property used, or to be used, by
the Government and, intending to defraud the Government, makes or delivers the receipt without
completely knowing that the information on the receipt is true;
(F) knowingly buys, or receives as a pledge of an obligation or debt, public property from an officer
or employee of the Government, or a member of the Armed Forces, who lawfully may not sell or
pledge property; or
(G) knowingly makes, uses, or causes to be made or used, a false record or statement material to an
obligation to pay or transmit money or property to the Government, or knowingly conceals or
knowingly and improperly avoids or decreases an obligation to pay or transmit money or property to
the Government,
is liable to the United States Government for a civil penalty of not less than $5,000 and not more than
$10,000, as adjusted by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990 (28 U.S.C. 2461 note;
P.L. 104-410), plus 3 times the amount of damages which the Government sustains because of the act of
that person.
(2) Reduced damages.–If the court finds that–
(A) the person committing the violation of this subsection furnished officials of the United States
responsible for investigating false claims violations with all information known to such person about
the violation within 30 days after the date on which the defendant first obtained the information;
(B) such person fully cooperated with any Government investigation of such violation; and
(C) at the time such person furnished the United States with the information about the violation, no
criminal prosecution, civil action, or administrative action had commenced under this title with respect
to such violation, and the person did not have actual knowledge of the existence of an investigation
into such violation,
(...continued)
provide far greater executive authority over the conduct of false claims litigation than that provided for in the law
validated in Morrison”); but see Riley v. St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, 252 F.3d at 766 (Smith & DeMoss, JJ.,
dissenting)(“[T]he most crucial ways in which the FCA fails to provide the executive with sufficient control are that the
FCA does not allow the Executive to initiate litigation, terminate litigation (without court approval), control the scope
and pace of the litigation, or control the procedures used by the lawyer prosecuting the case. The FCA’s most severe
violations of the separation of powers principles embedded in the Take Care Clause include the fact that unaccountable,
self-interested relators are put in charge of vindicating government rights, and that the transparency and controls of the
constitutional system are not in place to influence the outcome of such litigation”).
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the court may assess not less than 2 times the amount of damages which the Government sustains because
of the act of that person.
(3) Costs of civil actions.–A person violating this subsection shall also be liable to the United States
Government for the costs of a civil action brought to recover any such penalty or damages.
(b) Definitions.–For purposes of this section–
(1) the terms “knowing” and “knowingly” –
(A) mean that a person, with respect to information–
(i) has actual knowledge of the information;
(ii) acts in deliberate ignorance of the truth or falsity of the information; or
(iii) acts in reckless disregard of the truth or falsity of the information; and
(B) require no proof of specific intent to defraud;
(2) the term “claim” –
(A) means any request or demand, whether under a contract or otherwise, for money or property and
whether or not the United States has title to the money or property, that—
(i) is presented to an officer, employee, or agent of the United States; or
(ii) is made to a contractor, grantee, or other recipient, if the money or property is to be spent or
used on the Government’s behalf or to advance a Government program or interest, and if the
United States Government—
(I) provides or has provided any portion of the money or property requested or demanded; or
(II) will reimburse such contractor, grantee, or other recipient for any portion of the money
or property which is requested or demanded; and
(B) does not include requests or demands for money or property that the Government has paid to an
individual as compensation for Federal employment or as an income subsidy with no restrictions on
that individual’s use of the money or property;
(3) the term “obligation” means an established duty, whether or not fixed, arising from an express or
implied contractual, grantor-grantee, or licensor-licensee relationship, from a fee-based or similar
relationship, from statute or regulation, or from the retention of any overpayment; and
(4) the term “material” means having a natural tendency to influence, or be capable of influencing, the
payment or receipt of money or property.
(c) Exemption from disclosure. –Any information furnished pursuant to subsection (a)(2) shall be exempt
from disclosure under section 552 of title 5.
(d) Exclusion. –This section does not apply to claims, records, or statements made under the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986.
[(e) Redesignated (d)]
31 U.S.C. 3730
(a) Responsibilities of the Attorney General. –The Attorney General diligently shall investigate a
violation under section 3729. If the Attorney General finds that a person has violated or is violating section
3729, the Attorney General may bring a civil action under this section against the person.
(b) Actions by private persons. –(1) A person may bring a civil action for a violation of section 3729 for
the person and for the United States Government. The action shall be brought in the name of the
Government. The action may be dismissed only if the court and the Attorney General give written consent
to the dismissal and their reasons for consenting.
(2) A copy of the complaint and written disclosure of substantially all material evidence and information
the person possesses shall be served on the Government pursuant to Rule 4(d)(4) of the Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure. The complaint shall be filed in camera, shall remain under seal for at least 60 days, and
shall not be served on the defendant until the court so orders. The Government may elect to intervene and
proceed with the action within 60 days after it receives both the complaint and the material evidence and
information.
(3) The Government may, for good cause shown, move the court for extensions of the time during which
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the complaint remains under seal under paragraph (2). Any such motions may be supported by affidavits or
other submissions in camera. The defendant shall not be required to respond to any complaint filed under
this section until 20 days after the complaint is unsealed and served upon the defendant pursuant to Rule 4
of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
(4) Before the expiration of the 60-day period or any extensions obtained under paragraph (3), the
Government shall–
(A) proceed with the action, in which case the action shall be conducted by the Government; or
(B) notify the court that it declines to take over the action, in which case the person bringing the action
shall have the right to conduct the action.
(5) When a person brings an action under this subsection, no person other than the Government may
intervene or bring a related action based on the facts underlying the pending action.
(c) Rights of the parties to qui tam actions. –(1) If the Government proceeds with the action, it shall have
the primary responsibility for prosecuting the action, and shall not be bound by an act of the person
bringing the action. Such person shall have the right to continue as a party to the action, subject to the
limitations set forth in paragraph (2).
(2)(A) The Government may dismiss the action notwithstanding the objections of the person initiating the
action if the person has been notified by the Government of the filing of the motion and the court has
provided the person with an opportunity for a hearing on the motion.
(B) The Government may settle the action with the defendant notwithstanding the objections of the person
initiating the action if the court determines, after a hearing, that the proposed settlement is fair, adequate,
and reasonable under all the circumstances. Upon a showing of good cause, such hearing may be held in
camera.
(C) Upon a showing by the Government that unrestricted participation during the course of the litigation
by the person initiating the action would interfere with or unduly delay the Government’s prosecution of
the case, or would be repetitious, irrelevant, or for purposes of harassment, the court may, in its discretion,
impose limitations on the person’s participation, such as–
(i) limiting the number of witnesses the person may call;
(ii) limiting the length of the testimony of such witnesses;
(iii) limiting the person’s cross-examination of witnesses; or
(iv) otherwise limiting the participation by the person in the litigation.
(D) Upon a showing by the defendant that unrestricted participation during the course of the litigation by
the person initiating the action would be for purposes of harassment or would cause the defendant undue
burden or unnecessary expense, the court may limit the participation by the person in the litigation.
(3) If the Government elects not to proceed with the action, the person who initiated the action shall have
the right to conduct the action. If the Government so requests, it shall be served with copies of all pleadings
filed in the action and shall be supplied with copies of all deposition transcripts (at the Government’s
expense). When a person proceeds with the action, the court, without limiting the status and rights of the
person initiating the action, may nevertheless permit the Government to intervene at a later date upon a
showing of good cause.
(4) Whether or not the Government proceeds with the action, upon a showing by the Government that
certain actions of discovery by the person initiating the action would interfere with the Government’s
investigation or prosecution of a criminal or civil matter arising out of the same facts, the court may stay
such discovery for a period of not more than 60 days. Such a showing shall be conducted in camera. The
court may extend the 60-day period upon a further showing in camera that the Government has pursued the
criminal or civil investigation or proceedings with reasonable diligence and any proposed discovery in the
civil action will interfere with the ongoing criminal or civil investigation or proceedings.
(5) Notwithstanding subsection (b), the Government may elect to pursue its claim through any alternate
remedy available to the Government, including any administrative proceeding to determine a civil money
penalty. If any such alternate remedy is pursued in another proceeding, the person initiating the action shall
have the same rights in such proceeding as such person would have had if the action had continued under
this section. Any finding of fact or conclusion of law made in such other proceeding that has become final
shall be conclusive on all parties to an action under this section. For purposes of the preceding sentence, a
finding or conclusion is final if it has been finally determined on appeal to the appropriate court of the
United States, if all time for filing such an appeal with respect to the finding or conclusion has expired, or if
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the finding or conclusion is not subject to judicial review.
(d) Award to qui tam plaintiff. –(1) If the Government proceeds with an action brought by a person under
subsection (b), such person shall, subject to the second sentence of this paragraph, receive at least 15
percent but not more than 25 percent of the proceeds of the action or settlement of the claim, depending
upon the extent to which the person substantially contributed to the prosecution of the action. Where the
action is one which the court finds to be based primarily on disclosures of specific information (other than
information provided by the person bringing the action) relating to allegations or transactions in a criminal,
civil, or administrative hearing, in a congressional, administrative, or Government Accounting Office
report, hearing, audit, or investigation, or from the news media, the court may award such sums as it
considers appropriate, but in no case more than 10 percent of the proceeds, taking into account the
significance of the information and the role of the person bringing the action in advancing the case to
litigation. Any payment to a person under the first or second sentence of this paragraph shall be made from
the proceeds. Any such person shall also receive an amount for reasonable expenses which the court finds
to have been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs. All such expenses, fees, and
costs shall be awarded against the defendant.
(2) If the Government does not proceed with an action under this section, the person bringing the action or
settling the claim shall receive an amount which the court decides is reasonable for collecting the civil
penalty and damages. The amount shall be not less than 25 percent and not more than 30 percent of the
proceeds of the action or settlement and shall be paid out of such proceeds. Such person shall also receive
an amount for reasonable expenses which the court finds to have been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable
attorneys’ fees and costs. All such expenses, fees, and costs shall be awarded against the defendant.
(3) Whether or not the Government proceeds with the action, if the court finds that the action was brought
by a person who planned and initiated the violation of section 3729 upon which the action was brought,
then the court may, to the extent the court considers appropriate, reduce the share of the proceeds of the
action which the person would otherwise receive under paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection, taking into
account the role of that person in advancing the case to litigation and any relevant circumstances pertaining
to the violation. If the person bringing the action is convicted of criminal conduct arising from his or her
role in the violation of section 3729, that person shall be dismissed from the civil action and shall not
receive any share of the proceeds of the action. Such dismissal shall not prejudice the right of the United
States to continue the action, represented by the Department of Justice.
(4) If the Government does not proceed with the action and the person bringing the action conducts the
action, the court may award to the defendant its reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses if the defendant
prevails in the action and the court finds that the claim of the person bringing the action was clearly
frivolous, clearly vexatious, or brought primarily for purposes of harassment.
(e) Certain actions barred. –(1) No court shall have jurisdiction over an action brought by a former or
present member of the armed forces under subsection (b) of this section against a member of the armed
forces arising out of such person’s service in the armed forces.
(2)(A) No court shall have jurisdiction over an action brought under subsection (b) against a Member of
Congress, a member of the judiciary, or a senior executive branch official if the action is based on evidence
or information known to the Government when the action was brought.
(B) For purposes of this paragraph, “senior executive branch official” means any officer or employee
listed in paragraphs (1) through (8) of section 101(f) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C.
App.).
(3) In no event may a person bring an action under subsection (b) which is based upon allegations or
transactions which are the subject of a civil suit or an administrative civil money penalty proceeding in
which the Government is already a party.
(4)(A) No court shall have jurisdiction over an action under this section based upon the public disclosure
of allegations or transactions in a criminal, civil, or administrative hearing, in a congressional,
administrative, or Government Accounting Office report, hearing, audit, or investigation, or from the news
media, unless the action is brought by the Attorney General or the person bringing the action is an original
source of the information.
(B) For purposes of this paragraph, “original source” means an individual who has direct and independent
knowledge of the information on which the allegations are based and has voluntarily provided the
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information to the Government before filing an action under this section which is based on the information.
(f) Government not liable for certain expenses. –The Government is not liable for expenses which a
person incurs in bringing an action under this section.
(g) Fees and expenses to prevailing defendant. –In civil actions brought under this section by the United
States, the provisions of section 2412(d) of title 28 shall apply.
(h) Relief from retaliatory actions. –
(1) In general. –Any employee, contractor, or agent shall be entitled to all relief necessary to make that
employee, contractor, or agent whole, if that employee, contractor, or agent is discharged, demoted,
suspended, threatened, harassed, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions
of employment because of lawful acts done by the employee, contractor, or agent on behalf of the
employee, contractor, or agent or associated others in furtherance of other efforts to stop 1 or more
violations of this subchapter.
(2) Relief. –Relief under paragraph (1) shall include reinstatement with the same seniority status that
employee, contractor, or agent would have had but for the discrimination, 2 times the amount of back pay,
interest on the back pay, and compensation for any special damages sustained as a result of the
discrimination, including litigation costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees. An action under this subsection
may be brought in the appropriate district court of the United States for the relief provided in this
subsection.
31 U.S.C. 3731
a) A subpena requiring the attendance of a witness at a trial or hearing conducted under section 3730 of
this title may be served at any place in the United States.
(b) A civil action under section 3730 may not be brought–
(1) more than 6 years after the date on which the violation of section 3729 is committed, or
(2) more than 3 years after the date when facts material to the right of action are known or reasonably
should have been known by the official of the United States charged with responsibility to act in the
circumstances, but in no event more than 10 years after the date on which the violation is committed,
whichever occurs last.
(c) If the Government elects to intervene and proceed with an action brought under 3730(b), the
Government may file its own complaint or amend the complaint of a person who has brought an action
under section 3730(b) to clarify or add detail to the claims in which the Government is intervening and to
add any additional claims with respect to which the Government contends it is entitled to relief. For statute
of limitations purposes, any such Government pleading shall relate back to the filing date of the complaint
of the person who originally brought the action, to the extent that the claim of the Government arises out of
the conduct, transactions, or occurrences set forth, or attempted to be set forth, in the prior complaint of that
person.
(d) In any action brought under section 3730, the United States shall be required to prove all essential
elements of the cause of action, including damages, by a preponderance of the evidence.
(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, or the Federal
Rules of Evidence, a final judgment rendered in favor of the United States in any criminal proceeding
charging fraud or false statements, whether upon a verdict after trial or upon a plea of guilty or nolo
contendere, shall estop the defendant from denying the essential elements of the offense in any action
which involves the same transaction as in the criminal proceeding and which is brought under subsection
(a) or (b) of section 3730.
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31 U.S.C. 3732
(a) Actions under section 3730.—Any action under section 3730 may be brought in any judicial district in
which the defendant or, in the case of multiple defendants, any one defendant can be found, resides,
transacts business, or in which any act proscribed by section 3729 occurred. A summons as required by the
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure shall be issued by the appropriate district court and served at any place
within or outside the United States.
(b) Claims under state law.—The district courts shall have jurisdiction over any action brought under the
laws of any State for the recovery of funds paid by a State or local government if the action arises from the
same transaction or occurrence as an action brought under section 3730.
(c) Service on State or local authorities.—With respect to any State or local government that is named as
a co-plaintiff with the United States in an action brought under subsection (b), a seal on the action ordered
by the court under section 3730(b) shall not preclude the Government or the person bringing the action
from serving the complaint, any other pleadings, or the written disclosure of substantially all material
evidence and information possessed by the person bringing the action on the law enforcement authorities
that are authorized under the law of that State or local government to investigate and prosecute such actions
on behalf of such governments, except that such seal applies to the law enforcement authorities so served to
the same extent as the seal applies to other parties in the action.
31 U.S.C. 3733
(a) In general. –
(1) Issuance and service. –Whenever the Attorney General, or a designee (for purposes of this section),
has reason to believe that any person may be in possession, custody, or control of any documentary
material or information relevant to a false claims law investigation, the Attorney General, or a designee,
may, before commencing a civil proceeding under section 3730(a) or other false claims law, or making an
election under section 3730(b), issue in writing and cause to be served upon such person, a civil
investigative demand requiring such person—
(A) to produce such documentary material for inspection and copying,
(B) to answer in writing written interrogatories with respect to such documentary material or
information,
(C) to give oral testimony concerning such documentary material or information, or
(D) to furnish any combination of such material, answers, or testimony.
The Attorney General may delegate the authority to issue civil investigative demands under this subsection.
Whenever a civil investigative demand is an express demand for any product of discovery, the Attorney
General, the Deputy Attorney General, or an Assistant Attorney General shall cause to be served, in any
manner authorized by this section, a copy of such demand upon the person from whom the discovery was
obtained and shall notify the person to whom such demand is issued of the date on which such copy was
served. Any information obtained by the Attorney General or a designee of the Attorney General under this
section may be shared with any qui tam relator if the Attorney General or designee determine it is
necessary as part of any false claims act investigation.
(2) Contents and deadlines. –
(A) Each civil investigative demand issued under paragraph (1) shall state the nature of the conduct
constituting the alleged violation of a false claims law which is under investigation, and the applicable
provision of law alleged to be violated.
(B) If such demand is for the production of documentary material, the demand shall–
(i) describe each class of documentary material to be produced with such definiteness and
certainty as to permit such material to be fairly identified;
(ii) prescribe a return date for each such class which will provide a reasonable period of time
within which the material so demanded may be assembled and made available for inspection and
copying; and
(iii) identify the false claims law investigator to whom such material shall be made available.
(C) If such demand is for answers to written interrogatories, the demand shall–-
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(i) set forth with specificity the written interrogatories to be answered;
(ii) prescribe dates at which time answers to written interrogatories shall be submitted; and
(iii) identify the false claims law investigator to whom such answers shall be submitted.
(D) If such demand is for the giving of oral testimony, the demand shall—
(i) prescribe a date, time, and place at which oral testimony shall be commenced;
(ii) identify a false claims law investigator who shall conduct the examination and the custodian
to whom the transcript of such examination shall be submitted;
(iii) specify that such attendance and testimony are necessary to the conduct of the investigation;
(iv) notify the person receiving the demand of the right to be accompanied by an attorney and any
other representative; and
(v) describe the general purpose for which the demand is being issued and the general nature of
the testimony, including the primary areas of inquiry, which will be taken pursuant to the demand.
(E) Any civil investigative demand issued under this section which is an express demand for any
product of discovery shall not be returned or returnable until 20 days after a copy of such demand has
been served upon the person from whom the discovery was obtained.
(F) The date prescribed for the commencement of oral testimony pursuant to a civil investigative
demand issued under this section shall be a date which is not less than seven days after the date on
which demand is received, unless the Attorney General or an Assistant Attorney General designated by
the Attorney General determines that exceptional circumstances are present which warrant the
commencement of such testimony within a lesser period of time.
(G) The Attorney General shall not authorize the issuance under this section of more than one civil
investigative demand for oral testimony by the same person unless the person requests otherwise or
unless the Attorney General, after investigation, notifies that person in writing that an additional
demand for oral testimony is necessary.
(b) Protected material or information. –
(1) In general. –A civil investigative demand issued under subsection (a) may not require the production
of any documentary material, the submission of any answers to written interrogatories, or the giving of any
oral testimony if such material, answers, or testimony would be protected from disclosure under–
(A) the standards applicable to subpoenas or subpoenas duces tecum issued by a court of the United
States to aid in a grand jury investigation; or
(B) the standards applicable to discovery requests under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, to the
extent that the application of such standards to any such demand is appropriate and consistent with the
provisions and purposes of this section.
(2) Effect on other orders, rules, and laws. –Any such demand which is an express demand for any
product of discovery supersedes any inconsistent order, rule, or provision of law (other than this section)
preventing or restraining disclosure of such product of discovery to any person. Disclosure of any product
of discovery pursuant to any such express demand does not constitute a waiver of any right or privilege
which the person making such disclosure may be entitled to invoke to resist discovery of trial preparation
materials.
(c) Service; jurisdiction. –
(1) By whom served. –Any civil investigative demand issued under subsection (a) may be served by a
false claims law investigator, or by a United States marshal or a deputy marshal, at any place within the
territorial jurisdiction of any court of the United States.
(2) Service in foreign countries. –Any such demand or any petition filed under subsection (j) may be
served upon any person who is not found within the territorial jurisdiction of any court of the United States
in such manner as the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure prescribe for service in a foreign country. To the
extent that the courts of the United States can assert jurisdiction over any such person consistent with due
process, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia shall have the same jurisdiction to
take any action respecting compliance with this section by any such person that such court would have if
such person were personally within the jurisdiction of such court.
(d) Service upon legal entities and natural persons. –
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(1) Legal entities. –Service of any civil investigative demand issued under subsection (a) or of any
petition filed under subsection (j) may be made upon a partnership, corporation, association, or other legal
entity by–
(A) delivering an executed copy of such demand or petition to any partner, executive officer,
managing agent, or general agent of the partnership, corporation, association, or entity, or to any agent
authorized by appointment or by law to receive service of process on behalf of such partnership,
corporation, association, or entity;
(B) delivering an executed copy of such demand or petition to the principal office or place of business
of the partnership, corporation, association, or entity; or
(C) depositing an executed copy of such demand or petition in the United States mails by registered or
certified mail, with a return receipt requested, addressed to such partnership, corporation, association,
or entity at its principal office or place of business.
(2) Natural persons. –Service of any such demand or petition may be made upon any natural person by–
(A) delivering an executed copy of such demand or petition to the person; or
(B) depositing an executed copy of such demand or petition in the United States mails by registered or
certified mail, with a return receipt requested, addressed to the person at the person’s residence or
principal office or place of business.
(e) Proof of service. –A verified return by the individual serving any civil investigative demand issued
under subsection (a) or any petition filed under subsection (j) setting forth the manner of such service shall
be proof of such service. In the case of service by registered or certified mail, such return shall be
accompanied by the return post office receipt of delivery of such demand.
(f) Documentary material. –
(1) Sworn certificates. –The production of documentary material in response to a civil investigative
demand served under this section shall be made under a sworn certificate, in such form as the demand
designates, by–
(A) in the case of a natural person, the person to whom the demand is directed, or
(B) in the case of a person other than a natural person, a person having knowledge of the facts and
circumstances relating to such production and authorized to act on behalf of such person.
The certificate shall state that all of the documentary material required by the demand and in the
possession, custody, or control of the person to whom the demand is directed has been produced and made
available to the false claims law investigator identified in the demand.
(2) Production of materials. –Any person upon whom any civil investigative demand for the production
of documentary material has been served under this section shall make such material available for
inspection and copying to the false claims law investigator identified in such demand at the principal place
of business of such person, or at such other place as the false claims law investigator and the person
thereafter may agree and prescribe in writing, or as the court may direct under subsection (j)(1). Such
material shall be made so available on the return date specified in such demand, or on such later date as the
false claims law investigator may prescribe in writing. Such person may, upon written agreement between
the person and the false claims law investigator, substitute copies for originals of all or any part of such
material.
(g) Interrogatories. –Each interrogatory in a civil investigative demand served under this section shall be
answered separately and fully in writing under oath and shall be submitted under a sworn certificate, in
such form as the demand designates, by–
(1) in the case of a natural person, the person to whom the demand is directed, or
(2) in the case of a person other than a natural person, the person or persons responsible for answering each
interrogatory.
If any interrogatory is objected to, the reasons for the objection shall be stated in the certificate instead of
an answer. The certificate shall state that all information required by the demand and in the possession,
custody, control, or knowledge of the person to whom the demand is directed has been submitted. To the
extent that any information is not furnished, the information shall be identified and reasons set forth with
particularity regarding the reasons why the information was not furnished.
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(h) Oral examinations. –
(1) Procedures. –The examination of any person pursuant to a civil investigative demand for oral
testimony served under this section shall be taken before an officer authorized to administer oaths and
affirmations by the laws of the United States or of the place where the examination is held. The officer
before whom the testimony is to be taken shall put the witness on oath or affirmation and shall, personally
or by someone acting under the direction of the officer and in the officer’s presence, record the testimony
of the witness. The testimony shall be taken stenographically and shall be transcribed. When the testimony
is fully transcribed, the officer before whom the testimony is taken shall promptly transmit a copy of the
transcript of the testimony to the custodian. This subsection shall not preclude the taking of testimony by
any means authorized by, and in a manner consistent with, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.
(2) Persons present. –The false claims law investigator conducting the examination shall exclude from the
place where the examination is held all persons except the person giving the testimony, the attorney for and
any other representative of the person giving the testimony, the attorney for the Government, any person
who may be agreed upon by the attorney for the Government and the person giving the testimony, the
officer before whom the testimony is to be taken, and any stenographer taking such testimony.
(3) Where testimony taken. –The oral testimony of any person taken pursuant to a civil investigative
demand served under this section shall be taken in the judicial district of the United States within which
such person resides, is found, or transacts business, or in such other place as may be agreed upon by the
false claims law investigator conducting the examination and such person.
(4) Transcript of testimony. –When the testimony is fully transcribed, the false claims law investigator or
the officer before whom the testimony is taken shall afford the witness, who may be accompanied by
counsel, a reasonable opportunity to examine and read the transcript, unless such examination and reading
are waived by the witness. Any changes in form or substance which the witness desires to make shall be
entered and identified upon the transcript by the officer or the false claims law investigator, with a
statement of the reasons given by the witness for making such changes. The transcript shall then be signed
by the witness, unless the witness in writing waives the signing, is ill, cannot be found, or refuses to sign. If
the transcript is not signed by the witness within 30 days after being afforded a reasonable opportunity to
examine it, the officer or the false claims law investigator shall sign it and state on the record the fact of the
waiver, illness, absence of the witness, or the refusal to sign, together with the reasons, if any, given
therefor.
(5) Certification and delivery to custodian. –The officer before whom the testimony is taken shall certify
on the transcript that the witness was sworn by the officer and that the transcript is a true record of the
testimony given by the witness, and the officer or false claims law investigator shall promptly deliver the
transcript, or send the transcript by registered or certified mail, to the custodian.
(6) Furnishing or inspection of transcript by witness. –Upon payment of reasonable charges therefor,
the false claims law investigator shall furnish a copy of the transcript to the witness only, except that the
Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, or an Assistant Attorney General may, for good cause,
limit such witness to inspection of the official transcript of the witness’ testimony.
(7) Conduct of oral testimony. –(A) Any person compelled to appear for oral testimony under a civil
investigative demand issued under subsection (a) may be accompanied, represented, and advised by
counsel. Counsel may advise such person, in confidence, with respect to any question asked of such person.
Such person or counsel may object on the record to any question, in whole or in part, and shall briefly state
for the record the reason for the objection. An objection may be made, received, and entered upon the
record when it is claimed that such person is entitled to refuse to answer the question on the grounds of any
constitutional or other legal right or privilege, including the privilege against self-incrimination. Such
person may not otherwise object to or refuse to answer any question, and may not directly or through
counsel otherwise interrupt the oral examination. If such person refuses to answer any question, a petition
may be filed in the district court of the United States under subsection (j)(1) for an order compelling such
person to answer such question.
(B) If such person refuses to answer any question on the grounds of the privilege against self-
incrimination, the testimony of such person may be compelled in accordance with the provisions of part V
of title 18.
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(8) Witness fees and allowances. –Any person appearing for oral testimony under a civil investigative
demand issued under subsection (a) shall be entitled to the same fees and allowances which are paid to
witnesses in the district courts of the United States.
(i) Custodians of documents, answers, and transcripts. –
(1) Designation. –The Attorney General shall designate a false claims law investigator to serve as
custodian of documentary material, answers to interrogatories, and transcripts of oral testimony received
under this section, and shall designate such additional false claims law investigators as the Attorney
General determines from time to time to be necessary to serve as deputies to the custodian.
(2) Responsibility for materials; disclosure. –(A) A false claims law investigator who receives any
documentary material, answers to interrogatories, or transcripts of oral testimony under this section shall
transmit them to the custodian. The custodian shall take physical possession of such material, answers, or
transcripts and shall be responsible for the use made of them and for the return of documentary material
under paragraph (4).
(B) The custodian may cause the preparation of such copies of such documentary material, answers to
interrogatories, or transcripts of oral testimony as may be required for official use by any false claims law
investigator, or other officer or employee of the Department of Justice. Such material, answers, and
transcripts may be used by any such authorized false claims law investigator or other officer or employee in
connection with the taking of oral testimony under this section.
(C) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, no documentary material, answers to interrogatories,
or transcripts of oral testimony, or copies thereof, while in the possession of the custodian, shall be
available for examination by any individual other than a false claims law investigator or other officer or
employee of the Department of Justice authorized under subparagraph (B). The prohibition in the preceding
sentence on the availability of material, answers, or transcripts shall not apply if consent is given by the
person who produced such material, answers, or transcripts, or, in the case of any product of discovery
produced pursuant to an express demand for such material, consent is given by the person from whom the
discovery was obtained. Nothing in this subparagraph is intended to prevent disclosure to the Congress,
including any committee or subcommittee of the Congress, or to any other agency of the United States for
use by such agency in furtherance of its statutory responsibilities.
(D) While in the possession of the custodian and under such reasonable terms and conditions as the
Attorney General shall prescribe–
(i) documentary material and answers to interrogatories shall be available for examination by the
person who produced such material or answers, or by a representative of that person authorized by that
person to examine such material and answers; and
(ii) transcripts of oral testimony shall be available for examination by the person who produced such
testimony, or by a representative of that person authorized by that person to examine such transcripts.
(3) Use of material, answers, or transcripts in other proceedings. –Whenever any attorney of the
Department of Justice has been designated to appear before any court, grand jury, or Federal agency in any
case or proceeding, the custodian of any documentary material, answers to interrogatories, or transcripts of
oral testimony received under this section may deliver to such attorney such material, answers, or
transcripts for official use in connection with any such case or proceeding as such attorney determines to be
required. Upon the completion of any such case or proceeding, such attorney shall return to the custodian
any such material, answers, or transcripts so delivered which have not passed into the control of such court,
grand jury, or agency through introduction into the record of such case or proceeding.
(4) Conditions for return of material. –If any documentary material has been produced by any person in
the course of any false claims law investigation pursuant to a civil investigative demand under this section,
and—
(A) any case or proceeding before the court or grand jury arising out of such investigation, or any
proceeding before any Federal agency involving such material, has been completed, or
(B) no case or proceeding in which such material may be used has been commenced within a
reasonable time after completion of the examination and analysis of all documentary material and other
information assembled in the course of such investigation,
the custodian shall, upon written request of the person who produced such material, return to such person
any such material (other than copies furnished to the false claims law investigator under subsection (f)(2) or
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made for the Department of Justice under paragraph (2)(B)) which has not passed into the control of any
court, grand jury, or agency through introduction into the record of such case or proceeding.
(5) Appointment of successor custodians. –In the event of the death, disability, or separation from
service in the Department of Justice of the custodian of any documentary material, answers to
interrogatories, or transcripts of oral testimony produced pursuant to a civil investigative demand under this
section, or in the event of the official relief of such custodian from responsibility for the custody and
control of such material, answers, or transcripts, the Attorney General shall promptly–
(A) designate another false claims law investigator to serve as custodian of such material, answers, or
transcripts, and
(B) transmit in writing to the person who produced such material, answers, or testimony notice of the
identity and address of the successor so designated.
Any person who is designated to be a successor under this paragraph shall have, with regard to such
material, answers, or transcripts, the same duties and responsibilities as were imposed by this section upon
that person’s predecessor in office, except that the successor shall not be held responsible for any default or
dereliction which occurred before that designation.
(j) Judicial proceedings. –
(1) Petition for enforcement. –Whenever any person fails to comply with any civil investigative demand
issued under subsection (a), or whenever satisfactory copying or reproduction of any material requested in
such demand cannot be done and such person refuses to surrender such material, the Attorney General may
file, in the district court of the United States for any judicial district in which such person resides, is found,
or transacts business, and serve upon such person a petition for an order of such court for the enforcement
of the civil investigative demand.
(2) Petition to modify or set aside demand. –(A) Any person who has received a civil investigative
demand issued under subsection (a) may file, in the district court of the United States for the judicial
district within which such person resides, is found, or transacts business, and serve upon the false claims
law investigator identified in such demand a petition for an order of the court to modify or set aside such
demand. In the case of a petition addressed to an express demand for any product of discovery, a petition to
modify or set aside such demand may be brought only in the district court of the United States for the
judicial district in which the proceeding in which such discovery was obtained is or was last pending. Any
petition under this subparagraph must be filed—
(i) within 20 days after the date of service of the civil investigative demand, or at any time before the
return date specified in the demand, whichever date is earlier, or
(ii) within such longer period as may be prescribed in writing by any false claims law investigator
identified in the demand.
(B) The petition shall specify each ground upon which the petitioner relies in seeking relief under
subparagraph (A), and may be based upon any failure of the demand to comply with the provisions of this
section or upon any constitutional or other legal right or privilege of such person. During the pendency of
the petition in the court, the court may stay, as it deems proper, the running of the time allowed for
compliance with the demand, in whole or in part, except that the person filing the petition shall comply
with any portions of the demand not sought to be modified or set aside.
(3) Petition to modify or set aside demand for product of discovery. –(A) In the case of any civil
investigative demand issued under subsection (a) which is an express demand for any product of discovery,
the person from whom such discovery was obtained may file, in the district court of the United States for
the judicial district in which the proceeding in which such discovery was obtained is or was last pending,
and serve upon any false claims law investigator identified in the demand and upon the recipient of the
demand, a petition for an order of such court to modify or set aside those portions of the demand requiring
production of any such product of discovery. Any petition under this subparagraph must be filed–
(i) within 20 days after the date of service of the civil investigative demand, or at any time before the
return date specified in the demand, whichever date is earlier, or
(ii) within such longer period as may be prescribed in writing by any false claims law investigator
identified in the demand.
(B) The petition shall specify each ground upon which the petitioner relies in seeking relief under
subparagraph (A), and may be based upon any failure of the portions of the demand from which relief is
sought to comply with the provisions of this section, or upon any constitutional or other legal right or
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privilege of the petitioner. During the pendency of the petition, the court may stay, as it deems proper,
compliance with the demand and the running of the time allowed for compliance with the demand.
(4) Petition to require performance by custodian of duties. –At any time during which any custodian is
in custody or control of any documentary material or answers to interrogatories produced, or transcripts of
oral testimony given, by any person in compliance with any civil investigative demand issued under
subsection (a), such person, and in the case of an express demand for any product of discovery, the person
from whom such discovery was obtained, may file, in the district court of the United States for the judicial
district within which the office of such custodian is situated, and serve upon such custodian, a petition for
an order of such court to require the performance by the custodian of any duty imposed upon the custodian
by this section.
(5) Jurisdiction. –Whenever any petition is filed in any district court of the United States under this
subsection, such court shall have jurisdiction to hear and determine the matter so presented, and to enter
such order or orders as may be required to carry out the provisions of this section. Any final order so
entered shall be subject to appeal under section 1291 of title 28. Any disobedience of any final order
entered under this section by any court shall be punished as a contempt of the court.
(6) Applicability of federal rules of civil procedure. –The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure shall apply
to any petition under this subsection, to the extent that such rules are not inconsistent with the provisions of
this section.
(k) Disclosure exemption. –Any documentary material, answers to written interrogatories, or oral
testimony provided under any civil investigative demand issued under subsection (a) shall be exempt from
disclosure under section 552 of title 5.
(l) Definitions. –For purposes of this section–
(1) the term “false claims law” means–
(A) this section and sections 3729 and 3732; and
(B) any Act of Congress enacted after the date of the enactment of this section which prohibits, or
makes available to the United States in any court of the United States any civil remedy with respect to,
any false claim against, bribery of, or corruption of any officer or employee of the United States;
(2) the term “false claims law investigation” means any inquiry conducted by any false claims law
investigator for the purpose of ascertaining whether any person is or has been engaged in any violation of a
false claims law;
(3) the term “false claims law investigator” means any attorney or investigator employed by the
Department of Justice who is charged with the duty of enforcing or carrying into effect any false claims
law, or any officer or employee of the United States acting under the direction and supervision of such
attorney or investigator in connection with a false claims law investigation;
(4) the term “person” means any natural person, partnership, corporation, association, or other legal entity,
including any State or political subdivision of a State;
(5) the term “documentary material” includes the original or any copy of any book, record, report,
memorandum, paper, communication, tabulation, chart, or other document, or data compilations stored in
or accessible through computer or other information retrieval systems, together with instructions and all
other materials necessary to use or interpret such data compilations, and any product of discovery;
(6) the term “custodian” means the custodian, or any deputy custodian, designated by the Attorney General
under subsection (i)(1);
(7) the term “product of discovery” includes–
(A) the original or duplicate of any deposition, interrogatory, document, thing, result of the inspection
of land or other property, examination, or admission, which is obtained by any method of discovery in
any judicial or administrative proceeding of an adversarial nature;
(B) any digest, analysis, selection, compilation, or derivation of any item listed in subparagraph (A);
and
(C) any index or other manner of access to any item listed in subparagraph (A); and
(8) the term “official use” means any use that is consistent with the law, and the regulations and policies of
the Department of Justice, including use in connection with internal Department of Justice memoranda and
reports; communications between the Department of Justice and a Federal, State, or local government
agency, or a contractor of a Federal, State, or local government agency, undertaken in furtherance of a
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Department of Justice investigation or prosecution of a case; interviews of any qui tam relator or other
witness; oral examinations; depositions; preparation for and response to civil discovery requests;
introduction into the record of a case or proceeding; applications, motions, memoranda and briefs
submitted to a court or other tribunal; and communications with Government investigators, auditors,
consultants and experts, the counsel of other parties, arbitrators and mediators, concerning an investigation,
case or proceeding.
Author Contact Information
Charles Doyle
Senior Specialist in American Public Law
cdoyle@crs.loc.gov, 7-6968
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