During the Civil War, corrupt
military contractors were defrauding the United
States Army out of hundreds of thousands of dollars
and putting troops at risk by supplying troops with
defective products and faulty war equipment. Illegal
price gouging was a common practice and the armed
forces of the United States suffered. In response,
Abraham Lincoln enacted the Federal Civil False
Claims Act. A key provision of the act was known as
qui tam.
The abbreviation is from Latin
and refers to "a person who files a suit for the
king as for himself". Qui tam laws have existed for
centuries as deceptive government contractors have
been around as long as government contracting has.
Qui tam actions allow a private citizen to file a
lawsuit on behalf of the U.S. government in an
effort to recover losses caused by fraud against the
government. The law is an incentive for civilians
who know of individuals or companies making false
claims for profit to come forward with information.
In reward, the "whistleblower" (also known as the
relator) shares in any federal revenue recovered.
Since 1986, relators (Whistleblowers) have recovered over $1 billion
dollars for helping
expose fraud against the government. If you are
aware of a defense contractor, highway contractor, large
health care company, or other large contractor or
subcontractor that is defrauding the United States
Government out of millions or billions of dollars, please
email The Coomer Law Firm
or use our simple
contact form
to speak with a Qui Tam lawsuit Whistleblower lawyer.