Justice Department Recovers $3.8B from False Claims Act Cases in 2013

The Justice Department secured $3.8 billion for settlements and judgments from civil cases involving fraud against the government in the 2013 fiscal year, the U.S. Department of Justice announced today.

This amount, which is the second largest annual recovery of its type in history, brings total recoveries under the False Claims Act, since 2009, to $17 billion – nearly half the total recoveries since the Act was amended 27 years ago in 1986.

The Justice Department’s efforts recovered more than $3 billion for the fourth year in a row. As in previous years, the largest recoveries were related to health care fraud, which reached $2.6 billion. Procurement fraud (related primarily to defense contracts) accounted for another $890 million – a record in that area.

Of the $3.8 billion the department recovered in 2013, $2.9 billion was the result of lawsuits filed under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act. During the same period, the department paid out more than $345 million to the individuals who exposed fraud and false claims by filing a qui tam complaint. 

The Chanler Group, in association with the Hirst Law Group, represents whistleblowers who take action under the False Claims Act to report fraud committed against the federal and state governments.  We have years of experience representing whistleblower clients who uncover fraud of every kind perpetrated against our government including, health care fraud, contract fraud, and tax fraud.  Read more about our expertise in False Claims Act cases and how you can take action.