False Claims Act -- 2019



Cochise Consultancy v. United States   (U.S. Supreme Court)

Statute-of-limitations for private false claims act cases

The NAM filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court urging a limited time frame for private relators to bring False Claims Act (FCA) cases. The FCA establishes two distinct statute-of-limitations periods: six years for relators’ claims and up to ten years for claims brought by a government official or with the knowledge of a government official. The U.S. Supreme Court considered the issue of whether the “government knowledge” period of ten years applies only when the government intervenes in the case or whether that period also applies to relators even when the government has chosen not to pursue the claim. The shorter statute of limitations would reduce the number of very old claims that manufacturers would be forced to defend—at significant expense and with the disadvantage of faded memories. The NAM’s brief argued that a relator in an FCA action is limited to the six-year statute of limitations, but the Court held that the longer limit of up to ten years applies.


Related Documents:
NAM brief  (January 9, 2019)