Whistleblower Awards in 12 Steps

Whistleblowers can earn significant monetary awards under the False Claims Act by alerting the U.S. Government to fraud. An experienced whistleblower lawyer can help a whistleblower navigate complex federal laws to maximize their whistleblower award and to ensure that they do not face retaliation.

How do I earn a whistleblower award?

The False Claims Act allows whistleblowers to file lawsuits in federal court alleging that a company has defrauded the U.S. Government out of money. If successful, a whistleblower is entitled to anywhere between 15% and 30% of the funds recovered by the Government. Based on our firm’s experience in representing whistleblowers, we have broken the process of earning a whistleblower award into twelve steps:

1. Identify the fraud: The first step is to identify how a company is defrauding the Government. You will need to identify the nature of the fraud (e.g., billing Medicare for medical services that were never rendered or falsely certifying that a government contract’s requirements have been met) and then confirm that Government dollars are involved.

2. Contact a whistleblower lawyer: The False Claims Act requires whistleblowers to be represented by a lawyer. After identifying the fraud, you should contact an experienced False Claims Act attorney to determine if you have a viable case, the next steps that you should take, and how to protect yourself from employer retaliation.

3. Gather evidence and documentation: Evidence supporting and corroborating your fraud claims are critical to a successful False Claims Act case. Evidence often comes in the form of emails, memos, text messages, spreadsheets, invoices, claim forms, payment documentation, and anything else which details the fraudulent scheme and specific instances of fraud.  Your whistleblower lawyer will likely advise you to gather as much evidence as you can to support the alleged fraud. Your lawyer, however, will provide guidance on how to gather evidence and caution you on things that you cannot do during this process.

4.Prepare a complaint and disclosure memorandum: Once you have provided your lawyer with the evidence, your lawyer will begin the process of preparing a complaint which will later be filed in federal court under seal. Your lawyer will also prepare a disclosure memorandum along with supporting materials for the Government’s review. Prior to filing suit, your lawyer will schedule a meeting with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and provide the Governments’ lawyers with the complaint and disclosure materials. 

5. The disclosure meeting: Prior to filing the complaint in court, your whistleblower lawyer will meet with the Government to “pitch” your case to the Government and answer any questions that the Governments’ lawyers may have. The purpose of this pre-filing meeting is two-fold. First, the False Claims Act requires you to disclose the fraud prior to filing the complaint in order to be considered an “original source.” Whether a relator receives the status of an original source can mean the difference between a large award and no money whatsoever. Second, this meeting is your lawyer’s first opportunity to capture the Government’s interest in your case. One your goals is to have the Government take over your case (referred to as “intervening” in a case). Whether the Government intervenes can also mean the difference between a large award and no money whatsoever. Done properly, this meeting will grab the Government’s attention and make it more likely that they will intervene in the case.

6. File your lawsuit: The next step is to file your whistleblower lawsuit in federal court under seal. The phrase “under seal” means that only you, the Government, and the court will know of its existence. It is imperative that you do not discuss the existence of the lawsuit with anyone else. Doing so could jeopardize the case, and the court could also sanction you with a monetary penalty. The reason why the case is filed under seal is to allow the Government to investigate your claims without potential witnesses or the company in question knowing about the investigation.

7. Assist the Government: After filing a whistleblower lawsuit, the Government will investigate the case. This usually means the Government will want to interview you at least once. The Government may also ask you to assist in gathering additional documents or even be involved in undercover efforts to obtain recordings or other evidence. At this point, it is critically important that you do no investigate any fraud claims further unless your lawyer or the Government have directly asked you to do so. It is also imperative that you assist the Government as much as possible as it can directly impact the size of your whistleblower award. 

8. The waiting game. The Government’s investigations usually take a long period of time. These investigations can span anywhere from one to five years and can be shortened or lengthened based on a variety of factors. During this time period, the Government may call on you to provide assistance or it may simply keep you in the dark while it conducts its investigation. Either way, you can expect a lengthy period of time to pass before the Government makes its decision on whether intervene in your case.

9. The decision to intervene. At some point, the Government will decide whether to intervene in your case. In most cases where it decides to intervene, it will have already begun the process of negotiating a settlement with the offending company. If the Government does not intervene in your case, you and your lawyer will have to decide if you should continue the case without the Government’s efforts. It is around this time that the Government will usually ask the court to unseal your case.

10. Negotiating a settlement. Like any negotiation, the Government will have a number in mind to settle the case and so will the offending company. Depending on how far apart the two are can affect how long it will take to ultimately achieve a number that both parties can agree on. The Government will typically ask for your input and your lawyer should be ready to explain why a certain number makes sense. When deciding on a number, your lawyer should take into account factors such as the nature of the fraud, the severity of harm to the Government or consumer, the length of fraud, efforts to conceal the fraud, prior instances of fraud, and the company’s ability to pay damages. 

11. Negotiating your award. One area that lawyers often overlook is negotiating a whistleblower’s award. A whistleblower’s award is a percentage of the amount paid by the offending company, which can span anywhere from 15% to 25% if the Government intervenes (if the Government does not intervene, the amount can go up to 30%). The Government will likely propose a percentage, and your lawyer should be ready to submit a memo to the Government explaining why you should be entitled higher percentage. Even a percentage or two can make a significant difference in large cases.

12. Collecting payment. Once the offending company has agreed to a settlement, you and your lawyer will need to sign a settlement agreement. The offending company will wire the funds to the U.S. Government, and the U.S. Government will then wire the whistleblower award to your attorney. Your attorney will then provide you with a check or wire the funds to your account. 

If you or someone you know is aware of a company defrauding the U.S. Government, you should consult an experienced whistleblower attorney to discuss their options about pursuing a whistleblower award under the False Claims Act. Our whistleblower attorneys have recovered significant award for whistleblowers across the country.