All government agencies have offices and departments that are dedicated to rooting out fraud, waste, conflicts of interest, abuse of authority, corruption, and unlawful conduct. Government employees at every level are often in the best position to report these activities to Inspectors General and their Offices, Criminal Investigation Divisions, Internal Affairs Divisions, the U.S. Congress, and public interest groups. But they are often reluctant to report violations because they fear retaliation, and justifiably so.
Seldon Bofinger’s Washington, D.C. federal whistleblower lawyers have guided employees, managers, and executives through the process of reporting these violations while fighting to shield them from vindictive retaliation. We have done so in military and commercial nuclear industries, at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, in criminal law enforcement, and elsewhere. Seldon Bofinger’s team of skilled whistleblower attorneys has in-depth knowledge of the laws and regulations that are designed to protect whistleblowers and the practical experience to shepherd them throughout the reporting and compensation processes. Contact us today to schedule a consultation.
How Can a Whistleblower Attorney Assist a Federal Employee?
A federal employee who has worked up the courage to speak up against abuses of power may not know about the processes for reporting misconduct or may be reluctant to blow the whistle. A federal whistleblower attorney in Washington, D.C. can help by assessing your information and determining if you know about misconduct that has violated federal laws, regulations, or policies, and how to represent you in gathering and structuring your evidence. If it comes to these, Seldon Bofinger can also devise and implement plans to prevent the federal government from interrupting or even derailing your career and interfering with your life outside of the workplace.
What Is A Qui Tam Action
The federal False Claims Act, also known as the Lincoln Law in honor of President Abraham Lincoln, has a unique role in remedying fraud, waste, and abuse in the federal government. It authorizes the Department of Justice to initiate civil lawsuits to recover three times the losses caused by individuals and companies that have filed false claims in government contracts, grants, and other financial transactions. The False Claims Act also enables individuals to participate in recovering the federal government’s losses and to obtain a portion of the monetary amount recovered by or on behalf of the government.
These individuals are known as relators in qui tam proceedings, and their journey to remedy fraud on the government begins with preparing detailed, corroborated reports, known as disclosure statements, as a precursor to filing a civil action on behalf of the United States. Those Complaints are filed in U.S. District Court under seal and presented to the Department of Justice for its analysis and investigation before the case proceeds any further. During that time, the Complaint must be kept in strict confidence, and the case itself must not be made public in any way.
After consulting closely with qui tam relators and their attorneys, the Justice Department makes a determination whether to intervene in the qui tam action. If it decides to intervene, the government formally takes the lead in litigation, working closely with the relator. If the Justice Department decides against intervening, relators have the option to proceed with cases on their own.
The False Claims Act contained the first provisions to encourage relators to step forward and, as needed, pursue false claims cases. Depending on their involvement, the magnitude of false claims, and the recovery, relators uncovering false claims against the government or pursuing false claims litigation when the government decides not to can receive up to 30% of the recovered losses. The False Claims Act also contains forceful provisions to protect whistleblowers who uncover and report false claims, assist the Department of Justice in recovering damages, or pursue a qui tam lawsuit if the Justice Department declines to intervene.
Schedule a Confidential Meeting with a Washington, D.C. Federal Whistleblower Attorney at Seldon Bofinger
Contact a Washington, D.C., federal whistleblower lawyer from Seldon Bofinger to schedule a consultation about how to proceed with reporting false claims. We may be able to represent you in that process by working with you to assess the strength of and corroborate your claims and advise you of the next steps in this challenging process. Schedule your consultation today.