FCA Materiality Archives - Constantine LLP

Alabama Court Reaffirms Constitutionality of False Claims Act

Posted 11/29/23

The False Claims Act is the government's primary tool to go after those committing fraud against the government. One of the key features of the statute is the qui tam provisions, which allow private parties (whistleblowers) to bring suit on the government's behalf and in return, receive a hefty share of any government recovery. The Constitutional muster of this feature has long been settled, with the statute...

Supreme Court Clarifies Government's Right to Dismiss False Claims Act Cases Brought by Whistleblowers

Posted 06/20/23

The Supreme Court last Friday (June 16) in United States ex rel. Polansky v. Executive Health Resources, Inc. clarified the scope of the Government's authority to dismiss False Claims Act cases brought by whistleblowers. In an 8 to 1 decision (with Justice Thomas dissenting), the Court held the Government may move to dismiss both during the seal period when it is investigating the case and after the seal when a...

Tagged in: FCA Federal, FCA Materiality, Government Decision,

Supreme Court Unanimously Rejects After the Fact Excuses

Posted 06/2/23

Monument of Abraham Lincoln in Washington DC

In a major victory for honest citizens, on June 1, 2023, the Supreme Court unanimously reversed the Seventh Circuit’s decision in United States ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc. Constantine Cannon whistleblower attorneys Eric Havian, Michael Ronickher, Ari Yampolsky, and Noah Brecker-Redd had filed an amicus brief on behalf of Senator Charles Grassley, the champion of the FCA, urging the Court to reverse this...

Tagged in: CC Lawyers, FCA Federal, FCA Materiality, Importance of Whistleblowers,

Constantine Cannon Whistleblower Attorneys File Brief to Supreme Court on Behalf of Senator Grassley

Posted 05/26/22

Constantine Cannon whistleblower attorneys were proud to represent long-time champion of the False Claims Act (FCA) Senator Charles Grassley in filing an amicus brief to the United States Supreme Court. In the brief, available here, Senator Grassley urges the Court to repair a worrying trend among certain courts that is undermining the statute. Specifically, the brief describes how the Seventh Circuit’s decision...

Tagged in: CC Lawyers, FCA Federal, FCA Materiality, Importance of Whistleblowers,

February 9, 2022

The Catholic Medical Center (CMC) will pay $3.8 million for violations of the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute. Over a ten-year period, the CMC provided call coverage services to a cardiologist, for free, in exchange for lucrative referrals to their hospital, resulting in receipt of millions of dollars for services and medical procedures. USAO NH

Tagged in: Anti-Kickback and Stark, FCA Materiality, Healthcare Fraud, Hospital Fraud,

Senator Grassley Leads Bi-Partisan Pro-Whistleblower Push to Amend False Claims Act

Posted 07/30/21

Perennial whistleblower-champion Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) is at it again. This time with the bi-partisan legislation he just introduced to further expand the reach of the False Claims Act, the government's key fraud enforcement tool. The statute was enacted in 1863 to fight widespread fraud by companies selling rotten food, sickly mules, and defective weapons to the Union Army during the Civil War. But...

Tagged in: FCA Federal, FCA Materiality, Importance of Whistleblowers, Retaliation, Whistleblower Rewards,

DOJ Fights a Catch-22 in False Claims Act Cases

Posted 07/23/21

Cases under the False Claims Act live or die on their evidence, and it’s no surprise that defendants wage long wars to resist efforts by the plaintiff (whether a whistleblower or the government) to prove their case. Heeding the old saw about the best defense, defendants also generally go on the offensive. They happily foot staggering legal bills to try to wear out a typically less-well-funded plaintiff with...

Tagged in: Defenses, FCA Federal, FCA Materiality, Importance of Whistleblowers, Whistleblower Case,

Whistleblower Champion Chuck Grassley Pushes for Further Strengthening of False Claims Act (Again)

Posted 03/26/21

female standing proud with her silhouette as a superhero

Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) already is celebrated as the modern-day champion of the False Claims Act. This is the government's main fraud-fighting tool, which empowers whistleblowers to act as private attorneys general and sue on the government's behalf over fraud in government contracts and programs. In successful cases, it rewards these whistleblowers with between 15% and 30% of the government's...

Tagged in: Defense Contract Fraud, FCA Federal, FCA Materiality, Government Procurement Fraud, Government Programs Fraud, Whistleblower Rewards,

Eleventh Circuit Revives VA Mortgage Fraud Whistleblower Case

Posted 01/22/21

mortgage papers with gavel, cash and magnifying glass

Last week, a three-judge panel on the Eleventh Circuit breathed new life into a fifteen-year-old mortgage fraud lawsuit brought by two whistleblowers under the False Claims Act. The opinion, United States ex rel. Bibby v. Mortgage Investors Corporation adds another voice to the chorus of circuit courts applying the Supreme Court’s landmark 2016 ruling on the FCA’s “materiality” standard, Universal Health...

Tagged in: Court Decision, FCA Federal, FCA Materiality, Housing and Mortgage Fraud, Legislation and Regulation News, Whistleblower Case,

DOJ Affirms its Materiality Provision but Threatens to Dismiss Gilead FCA Case

Posted 12/7/18

On November 30, 2018, the United States filed its amicus curiae brief before the Supreme Court in Gilead Sciences, Inc. v. United States ex rel. Campie (“Gilead”). The brief highlights two key topics in False Claims Act (“FCA”) litigation: (1) the interpretation of materiality under Universal Health Services, Inc. v. United States ex rel. Escobar, 136 S. Ct. 19889 (2016) (“Escobar”) and (2) the impact of...

Tagged in: FCA Federal, FCA Materiality, Whistleblower Case,

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FCA Materiality

Alabama Court Reaffirms Constitutionality of False Claims Act

Supreme Court Clarifies Government's Right to Dismiss False Claims Act Cases Brought by Whistleblowers

Supreme Court Unanimously Rejects After the Fact Excuses

Constantine Cannon Whistleblower Attorneys File Brief to Supreme Court on Behalf of Senator Grassley

February 9, 2022

Senator Grassley Leads Bi-Partisan Pro-Whistleblower Push to Amend False Claims Act

DOJ Fights a Catch-22 in False Claims Act Cases

Whistleblower Champion Chuck Grassley Pushes for Further Strengthening of False Claims Act (Again)

Eleventh Circuit Revives VA Mortgage Fraud Whistleblower Case

DOJ Affirms its Materiality Provision but Threatens to Dismiss Gilead FCA Case

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