Why Blow The Whistle?
What's In It For The Relator
Technically, there could be a lot of money involved. Successful
relators get up to 30% of what the government gets from the guilty party.
At least, that's what the statute says they get. In reality, the relators
frequently get much less, at least in part because the government controls how
the case is litigated.
Unfortunately, they also get a number of less pleasant "rewards" for doing
the right thing.
The Good News
According to the statute, if the government intervenes, a successful relator
can obtain a reward up to 25% of the amount recovered. In truth, most
relators wind up settling for something between 15% and 19% of the amount the
government collects.
The interesting part is that the government will usually get back a large
amount of money over the actual fraud. The government gets treble
(tripled) damages. So a person who defrauded the government out of $10 has
to pay $30 back. Also, under the statute, a civil penalty of between $5,500 and
$11,000 per violation is imposed on a guilty defendant.
So, if the defendant overcharged the government by $10 and did that 100 times
the math adds up like this:
$10 x 3 = $30.00 100 x $30.00 = $3,000
now add in the civil penalty:
100 x $5,500 = $550,000 (minimum penalty imposed)
100 x 11,000 = $1,100,000.00 (maximum penalty imposed) Thus a situation where a fraudulent company experienced a net gain of $1,000
results in them paying the government up to $1,103,000.00. If the relator
gets 20% of that amount, she gets $220,600.00 -- which is a nice reward for
doing the right thing.
Often times, however, there is more than one person who knows of the fraud,
and multiple relators wind up sharing a small pool of money. Worse, if a
relator is not the first to file, she may get nothing!
The Bad News
There are bad things that come with blowing the whistle. Most relators
are fired, and those that are have a hard time finding work because no one wants
to hire someone who might cost the company millions.
Blowing the whistle is not a painless process. The litigation process
(because it frequently involves delay caused by the government) can take up to
six years to complete, and sometimes longer. This delay is painful because
frequently the relator has a hard time finding gainful employment due to his
record of blowing the whistle.
Some relators are threatened with violence. Some relators receive calls
in the middle of the night. Certainly these are a very few of the ones who
actually blow the whistle, but they do get threatened. Sometimes spouses
lose their jobs because they are married to "a troublemaker." More often
than not the stress involved in whistleblowing places a burden on the marriage
and the family. Relators get divorced during the process causing
additional financial problems.
 Should
I Blow The Whistle?
This is a decision only the whistleblower can make. Certainly there is
a tremendous potential to obtain money from the process. But there is also
a degree of risk that must be balanced.
Generally, if you select a quality legal team, they can guide you through the
pitfalls inherent in the process, and can assist you in meeting the challenges
posed by the process. While a lawyer cannot lend money to a client or
assist him financially during the case, the lawyer can offer other forms of
assistance that may include helping him find employment.
If you think you have a good case, seek legal advice quickly. Time
really matters in a qui tam case. The sooner you seek good legal advice,
the quicker our team of experts can help you decide whether to do the right
thing.
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