Qui Tam

New Jersey False Claims Act approved by the Senate

By Brian F. LaBovick

New Jersey has joined in the fight against qui tam and Medicaid fraud against the government in New Jersey.  Thanks to the efforts of Senators John H. Adler and Joseph F. Vitale Co-Sponsors of S232, the New Jersey False Claims Act was approved by the Senate in a vote of of 37-0.

The New Jersey False Claims Act, Bill S232, allows residents in New Jersey to bring an action, against anyone, who intentionally causes the State to pay a false claim. If a person is found guilty in court, the bill would create civil penalties, between $5,000 and $10,000, for each verified count of a false claim, as well as imposing up to three-times the cost of any losses the public entity would have sustained because of the false claim.

The bill also sets up a whistleblower incentive to come forward with any information about false claims. If a false claim is proven in court, the whistleblower would be entitled to 15% to 25% of the proceeds recovered for New Jersey if the Attorney General brings the case, and 25% to 30% of the proceeds if the case is brought by the whistleblower. The exact amount of whistleblower compensation is determined by the courts.

I could not agree more with Senator Adler's statement of  "This bill will be another weapon in the arsenal of good government.”  It would be great if all states had a State False Claims Act that mirrored the Federal False Claims Act. It would send a strong message to individuals and corporations to think twice before defrauding the government. It would also encourage more individuals to come forward and report fraud against the government.

The Bill now heads to the Assembly before going to the desk of Governor Jon Corzine for signature of the Bill to be signed into Law. 

Click here to read the News Release from the New Jersey Senate Democrats.
Click here to read more from Jason Butkowski and PolitikerNJ.com.
Click here for a copy of the New Jersey False Claims Act.

Full post as published by Whistleblower Law Blog on January 14, 2008 (boomark / email).