On Wednesday, May 25, 2016, the Second Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision to dismiss FCA claims alleging that defendants supplied $1.5 billion worth of deficient night-vision goggles to the U.S. military. United States ex rel. Ladas v. Exelis Inc. et al., No. 14-4155 (2d Cir. May 25, 2016). The court found that the relator, Michael Ladas, failed to plead the fraud claims with sufficient...
A recent settlement illustrates the broad reach of the FCA and the substantial liability that “mere retention” of an overpayment can impose on contractors several steps removed from a government contract. The dispute involved alleged overpayments made to Bartlett Holdings Inc. (d/b/a BHI Energy/Sun Technical Services) during its performance as a subcontractor on a Federal project. Bartlett is a supplier of radiological protection services and...
The Federal District Court for the District of Columbia recently ruled that a former director of Medicaid audits in Washington D.C. can proceed with retaliation claims alleging he was fired for trying to stop his former bosses from covering up $100 million in improper payments to medical providers. Paul Hicks was hired by District of Columbia’s Office of the Inspector General (“OIG”) as an auditor in...
The Department of Justice announced late last month that pharmaceutical manufacturers Wyeth and Pfizer would pay $784 million to resolve a False Claims Act investigation and qui tam lawsuit arising from Wyeth’s failure to disclose its best pricing of drugs to the government. The case was brought under the FCA’s qui tam provisions; the relators’ share of the recovery is nearly $100 million. The case...
Earlier this month, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia dismissed a 2-count False Claims Act (FCA) complaint against Unisys Corporation. United States ex rel. Soodavar v. Unisys Corp., 2016 WL 1367163 (April 5, 2016) (“Soodavar”). The case addresses several important limits on FCA claims. Count I alleged that certain Unisys employees were so unqualified that their services, which involved installing and...
A recently unsealed False Claims Act case in Maine alleges a roof contractor knowingly failed to use materials that complied with the prime contracts for renovation of government buildings. According to the complaint filed by the United States in Emery v. Roof Systems of Maine Inc., 2:14-cv-00483-DBH (D. Me.), Roof Systems of Maine worked as a subcontractor at a National Guard installation at the former...
On February 22, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of an FCA claim brought by relators alleging that various lenders and loan servicers made false certifications to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, concluding that claims presented to Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac could not give rise to liability under § 3729(b)(2)(A)(i) of the FCA. See U.S. ex rel. Adams v. Aurora Loan Servs., Inc., No....
In an opinion issued earlier this month, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma refused to impose False Claims Act liability on a defendant who retained and invested his mother’s Social Security benefits after she went missing. The case adds to the growing body of law on the word “obligation” as it is used in the FCA; it also showcases the...
Late last week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published its final rule regulating how healthcare providers must report and return overpayments. This rule implements the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that healthcare providers who receive an overpayment from Medicare return the overpayment within 60 days of its identification. Overpayments not returned within the 60-day limit become “obligations” to the Federal government within the...
In an opinion issued on January 27, 2016, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a qui tam lawsuit against the University of Massachusetts, holding that the University was “indistinguishable” from a state agency and, therefore, not a “person” subject to potential liability under the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. 3729(a)(1)(A). Relator Michael Willette, an employee of the University’s...
