Federal Whistleblower Reward Attorney

The U.S. federal government operates a large number of programs and has numerous duties both here and abroad, from providing medical care to the needy to regulating publicly traded companies to conducting military and security missions. It also does a substantial amount of work with private contractors, who are necessary to provide the goods and services the federal government needs to serve the American public.

Unfortunately, disreputable individuals and businesses often take advantage of these programs by submitting false claims for payment, engaging in fraudulent activity, and ripping off the public. This not only wastes taxpayer money, it also distorts free markets, deprives ethical businesses of the opportunity to work with the government, and even puts lives and safety in jeopardy.

Federal investigators and attorneys work to prosecute these various schemes, but they are limited by staff and budget considerations. For this reason the government relies heavily upon whistleblowers to expose illegal activity and help recover misappropriated funds. These whistleblowers may qualify for a substantial whistleblower award along with legal protections against retaliation. If you have valuable information about misconduct being committed against any government agencies, or involving a company that is regulated by the same, let Oberheiden P.C. help you blow the whistle and claim a reward.

Types of Federal Whistleblower Cases

Almost any department or agency of the federal government is susceptible to fraud. The individuals and businesses they regulate could engage in unethical or even illegal business practices. Meanwhile, their contractors may submit false claims for payment, an example of which includes billing for services never rendered. Some of the most common cases that involve federal whistleblowers are associated with the following government entities:

• Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC): The SEC is responsible for protecting investors and ensuring the integrity of the market by enforcing securities laws and prosecuting securities law violations. Brokers, dealers, investment firms, and other businesses are required to follow the SEC’s regulations as well as federal law. Whistleblower cases may involve allegations of insider trading, fraudulent investments, market manipulation, foreign corrupt practices, corporate malfeasance, false public filings, and much more.
• Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC): This agency regulates derivatives markets, including those involving futures, options, and swaps. Through their regulatory and enforcement efforts, the CFTC works to keep markets fair and trustworthy for everyone. Whistleblowers often expose fraud (e.g. Ponzi schemes), market manipulation, anti-competitive businesses, and trade practice violations.
• Department of Defense (DOD): The DOD employs defense contractors to serve various duties around the world, including supplying troops with equipment. Contractors are expected to deal honestly with the government and to be fair in their business practices so they do not misuse taxpayer funds. Some key reasons to blow the whistle on defense contractors include unethical bidding practices, billing and invoicing fraud, selling equipment made of substandard materials to the armed forces, and violations of workplace and environmental laws.
• Medicare and Medicaid: These are two of the largest entitlement programs in the United States, so they are naturally a target for fraudsters. Overbilling for unnecessary patient services, upcoding, kickbacks, and promoting off-label uses of medication are common practices which abuse taxpayer funds. If you have evidence of these activities you may be able to blow the whistle.
• Internal Revenue Service (IRS): The IRS is responsible for ensuring that every American individual and corporation pays their fair share of taxes. The IRS also helps stop abuse of the tax code, for instance by companies which misclassify their employees as independent contractors. Individuals can blow the whistle on tax fraud, tax evasion, employer failure to collect payroll taxes, and for other reasons.

Put our highly experienced team on your side

Dr. Nick Oberheiden

Founder

Attorney-at-Law

Lynette S. Byrd

Former DOJ Trial Attorney

Partner

Brian J. Kuester

Former U.S. Attorney

Hon. Kevin McCarthy

55th Speaker, U.S. House of Representatives (ret.)

Government Consultant

Mike Pompeo

Of Counsel

Former U.S. Secretary of State

John W. Sellers

Former Senior DOJ Trial Attorney

Linda Julin McNamara

Federal Appeals Attorney

Nicholas B. Johnson

Former Prosecutor

Roger Bach

Former Special Agent (DOJ)

Chris J. Quick

Former Special Agent (FBI & IRS-CI)

Michael S. Koslow

Former Supervisory Special Agent (DOD-OIG)

Ray Yuen

Former Supervisory Special Agent (FBI)

How Does Someone Become a Federal Whistleblower?

There are two main ways to become a whistleblower and potentially claim a reward for helping the federal government put an end to the above and other forms of misconduct:

• File a False Claims Act/qui tam lawsuit: A private citizen can file what is known as a qui tam lawsuit, pursuant to the False Claims Act, against the fraudulent party. Qui tam means the suit is filed on behalf of the government. The plaintiff, known as a relator, will need to provide evidence that the business or individual has defrauded the federal government in some way. By filing a qui tam lawsuit, the relator can receive a reward, calculated as a percentage (up to 30% in some circumstances) of the money that the government recovers.
• Report through a whistleblower program: Certain departments and agencies like the SEC have their own whistleblower programs which allow individuals to submit reports about illegal or fraudulent activity. As with a False Claims Act lawsuit, the whistleblower can claim a potentially lucrative reward of up to 30% if the government acts on the information and recovers money from the wrongful party.

Why Hire a Whistleblower Attorney?

There are two main advantages to hiring a seasoned federal government whistleblower attorney to represent you: negotiating the maximum reward amount and protecting you against illegal retaliation. More specifically, our law firm can:

• Review the information you have to see if it qualifies you for a whistleblower reward
• Determine which avenue (e.g. qui tam lawsuit or an individual agency’s whistleblower program) is best suited to your claim
• Prepare all necessary paperwork and evidence related to your claim and submit it to the appropriate authorities
• Handle all communications with the government and its lawyers on your behalf
• Negotiate for the highest possible whistleblower reward by demonstrating the usefulness of your information to the government’s enforcement action
• Protect your confidentiality and privacy as much as practical (for instance, the IRS whistleblower program does not allow anonymous reporting)
• Defend your rights and interests as a whistleblower, including against illegal retaliation

Contact Our Federal Whistleblower Rewards Attorney

If you have evidence that someone is defrauding the government, violating the law, or filing fraudulent contractor claims, it’s time to speak with us about blowing the whistle and potentially collecting a reward. Call Oberheiden P.C. today to schedule your confidential consultation with one of our federal whistleblower rewards lawyers. You can also reach out to us by filling out our contact form.