A significant number of cases that are brought under the False
Claims Act are brought by qui tam relators
(whistleblowers) who bring claims seeking relief on behalf of the
Government. The number of whistleblower cases that are filed
annually has nearly doubled between 2008 and 2014.
The Government has a right to review and decide whether to
intervene in – effectively, take over – False Claims
cases cases that are brought by whistleblowers. The Government
intervention decision represents a critical stage in any False
Claims litigation. The Government has typically intervened in less
than 25% of qui tam cases that are filed, but the rapidly
growing number of qui tam filings means that the
Government is intervening in nearly twice as many cases as it was 7
years ago. The Government intervention decision is
particularly important because, while the Government intervenes in
less than 1 out of every 4 cases, the Government obtains more than
90% of its total False Claims
