• AML
  • Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • FAQS
Demand Protections for Artificial Intelligence Whistleblowers | Take Action!
Subscribe
Donate
Get Help
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
The Truth at Any Cost.
Qui Tam, Compliance and Anti-Corruption News.
Whistleblower Network News
No Result
View All Result
Home False Claims-Qui Tam

SCOTUS Rules to Not Curb DOJ’s Dismissals of Qui Tam Whistleblower Suits

Geoff SchwellerbyGeoff Schweller
June 16, 2023
in False Claims-Qui Tam
Reading Time: 4 mins read
Supreme Court
Share on TwitterShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInEmail

A U.S. Supreme Court ruling in a False Claims Act (FCA) whistleblower case grants the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) the authority to dismiss qui tam whistleblower lawsuits in cases in which it chose not to intervene. According to whistleblower advocates, the ruling weakens the efficacy of the FCA while language within Justice Clarence Thomas’s dissent poses even more serious danger to the constitutionality of certain FCA whistleblower cases.

Under the FCA, a whistleblower may file a qui tam lawsuit against a fraudster on behalf of the U.S. government. The DOJ then has the opportunity to intervene in the case and either litigate it itself or dismiss the suit. If the DOJ elects not to intervene, then the whistleblower can proceed with the qui tam suit on their own.

On June 16, the Supreme Court issued an 8-1 ruling in United States, ex rel. Polansky v. Executive Health Resources, Inc. In 2012, Jesse Polansky alleged that Executive Health Resources was falsely certifying inpatient hospital admissions as medically necessary, leading to the overbilling of Medicare. The DOJ chose not intervene in the case and Polansky pursued the qui tam suit without government intervention. In 2019, however, the DOJ moved to dismiss the case. Polanksy appealed this dismissal.

Register for National Whistleblower Day Register for National Whistleblower Day Register for National Whistleblower Day

The Supreme Court ruled that the DOJ has the authority to intervene and dismiss a whistleblower’s qui tam suit at any time, even if it chose not to intervene years earlier. 

In recent years, the overall amount of recoveries collected by qui tam whistleblower suits have been in sharp decline, a fact many whistleblower advocates attribute to the DOJ’s tendency to unfairly dismiss strong whistleblower cases. In Fiscal Year 2022, the whistleblower recoveries in government declined cases exceeded the recoveries obtained by the government in intervened cases for the first time in the history of the False Claims Act.

While the Supreme Court’s ruling will not curb the DOJ’s ability to dismiss qui tam whistleblower suits, some whistleblower advocates are even more alarmed by the dissent authored by Thomas.

“The Supreme Court’s decision will require Congress to fix the False Claims Act to protect whistleblower rights to pursue qui tam lawsuits when the government declines to intervene,” said whistleblower attorney David Colapinto, a founding partner of Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto. “Congress should create common sense standards for the government to meet when it wants to intervene late just to dismiss a whistleblower’s case. Under the Supreme Court’s ruling the government can intervene to dismiss the case years after the whistleblower has litigated the claims on behalf of the government.”

“Even more alarmingly, today’s ruling creates a greater danger to the constitutionality of the False Claims Act,” continued Colapinto, who has represented whistleblowers under the False Claims Act for over 30 years. “Three justices of the Supreme Court have indicated a willingness to consider declaring unconstitutional the False Claims Act provisions that allow whistleblowers to litigate fraud claims on behalf of the government after the government has turned down the case. Justice Clarence Thomas’s dissent was joined by Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett in questioning whether the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act violate Article II of the U.S. Constitution.”

“The position of Justice Thomas’s dissent is both dangerous and reckless,” Colapinto added. “This is a green light to every government contractor accused of fraud to argue that a whistleblower’s False Claims Act lawsuit in a declined case is unconstitutional despite the statute that says that whistleblowers can pursue these claims even if the government declines to intervene.”

“Declaring whistleblower rights under the False Claims Act unconstitutional would do great damage to a law that has been on the books for 37 years and that has helped the United States recover over $70 billion from government contractors that have defrauded taxpayers during that time,” concluded Colapinto.

The Polansky ruling comes on the heels of another FCA Supreme Court decision. On June 1, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an unanimous decision in U.S. ex rel. Schutte v. SuperValu Inc. The decision, heralded as a major victory by whistleblower advocates, overturns U.S. Court of Appeals rulings which allowed fraudulent companies to escape liability under the False Claims Act if they could prove their fraudulent actions could be based on a “reasonable interpretation of the law” regardless of whether or not the company intended to commit fraud.

Previous Post

DOT’s Rulemaking to Shape Future Success of Auto Safety Whistleblower Program

Next Post

False Claims Act Whistleblower Exposes Alleged Scheme to Evade Customs Duties

Geoff Schweller

Geoff Schweller

Geoff Schweller is the Assistant News Editor for Whistleblower Network News. He coordinates news coverage, and also writes about breaking whistleblower news, SEC whistleblowers, IRS whistleblowers, CFTC whistleblowers, and federal employee whistleblowers. Geoff graduated from Hamilton College with a degree in Sociology and minors in French & Francophone Studies and Cinema & New Media Studies.

Next Post
Customs whistleblower

False Claims Act Whistleblower Exposes Alleged Scheme to Evade Customs Duties

Receive Daily Alerts

Subscribe to receive daily breaking news and legislative developments sent to your inbox.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Most Popular

Whistleblower Advocates Take Issue with New York’s Policy of Favoring Arbitration

Whistleblowers to Receive Up to $920K after Alleging Fraud in Breast Cancer Testing

Supreme Court Upholds, For Now, Trump Firing of MSPB Chair

Whistleblower Suit Leads to $3.3 Million Stark Law Settlement

Paper Outlines Founding Father’s Warnings As Trump Goes After Key Whistleblower Appointees

Whistleblower Receives $5 Million for Exposing California Health System’s Alleged Kickback Scheme

Whistleblower Poll

Whistleblower Poll
Whistleblower Poll

Exclusive Marist Poll: Overwhelming Public Support Among Likely Voters For Increased Whistleblower Protections

byGeoff Schweller
October 6, 2020

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

STAY INFORMED.
Subscribe to receive breaking whistleblower updates.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

About Us

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Careers

Subscribe

  • Daily Mail
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • YouTube Channel

Contribute

  • Letter to the Editor
  • Submission Guidelines
  • Reprint Guidelines

Your Experience

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Help

  • Rules for Whistleblowers
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Advertise
Whistleblower Network News

Whistleblower Network News is an independent online newspaper providing our readers with up-to-date information on whistleblowing. Our goal is to be the best source of information on important qui tam, anti-corruption, compliance, and whistleblower law developments.

Submit an Article

Copyright © 2025, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

This Newspaper/Web Site is made available by the publisher for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice. By using this website, you understand that there is no attorney-client relationship between you and the Newspaper/Web Site publisher. The Newspaper/Web Site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.

Become a Whistleblower Network News Subscriber

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Subscribe to WNN

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Subscribe to WNN
Join the Waitlist for National Whistleblower Day 2025! July 30, 2025 on Capitol Hill
JOIN WAITLIST

Add New Playlist

Demand Protections for Artificial Intelligence Whistleblowers

Take Action!
No Result
View All Result
  • Exclusives
  • Government
    • False Claims-Qui Tam
    • Federal Employees
    • Intelligence
  • Corporate
    • CFTC & Commodities
    • Dodd-Frank
    • IRS & Tax
    • SEC & Securities
  • Features
  • Legislation
  • International
    • Foreign Corruption
  • Rewards
  • Whistleblower of the Week
  • Environment & Climate
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Employment
    • Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblowers
    • Retaliation
    • OSHA
  • Make National Whistleblower Day Permanent
  • Media
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • National Whistleblower Day
  • Whistleblower Poll
  • Whistleblower Resources
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Resources for Locating An Attorney
    • The New Whistleblowers Handbook

Copyright © 2024, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

Go to mobile version