Each year, lawsuits of various types and for different causes are filed in the United States. They can range from anything as simple as injuries sustained in a car accident to suing for wrongful termination. And since each lawsuit is different, the amount of time they take to be handled by a court varies as well.
One of these types of lawsuits fall under what’s called “qui tam”, which are whistleblower lawsuits protected by a law called the False Claims Act. This law states that whistleblowers who’ve exposed any sort of wrongdoing committed against the government are to be awarded in successful cases where the government has recovered any funds lost due to fraudulent activity. These types of cases are very beneficial for whistleblowers in helping the government stop fraudulent activities. In this piece, we’ll be going over a few important highlights of how qui tam lawsuits work.
The False Claims Act
As we mentioned above, the False Claims Act helps in awarding whistleblowers with recovered federal funds who’ve filed a qui tam lawsuit. The law also goes a step further in ensuring that these individuals’ jobs are protected due to the risk (both personal and professional) they’ve taken in exposing illegal activities. It isn’t uncommon for whistleblowers to face harassment or termination from their jobs due to their exposing fraudulent activity. Fortunately, the False Claims Act prevents this.
If a person happens to discover some sort of illegal behavior being committed against the government, then legal representation is absolutely needed in moving forward. Luckily, our firm has the experience needed to file qui tam cases and represent whistleblowers who’ve discovered these types of activity. Although it can be frightening to imagine exposing this form of wrongdoing, it’s absolutely imperative that it be done to ensure that it’s stopped and handled through proper legal processes. The biggest takeaway from this is that the False Claims Act is on your side.
Awards from a Lawsuit
You may be wondering how much of a reward a whistleblower will receive if their case is successful. It’s very difficult to determine this since a qui tam lawsuit’s success is itself dependent on many factors. Two of these include the integrity of the case (evidence, possible witnesses, etc.) and the attorney representing you.
As for the award amount, if the case is successful, the whistleblower can receive anywhere between 15% and 25% of the recovery amount. So, if the lawsuit results in an award of $100,000, for example, the whistleblower can receive a maximum of $25,000. The reason the law stipulates for a whistleblower to receive a portion of the award amount is to encourage others to expose wrongdoing, thereby hopefully limiting similar illegal behavior from being repeated.
We Want to Help You
Dealing with any sort of legal issue can be a terrifying and worrying experience, especially if you’re unware of how to proceed forward. Luckily, our lawyer can help you overcome that fear by taking a look at your situation and deciding on the best plan of action. If you’re in need of an attorney with the knowledge and passion to help your case, then contact our firm today for more information.