What is the history of the False Claims Act?
While the tradition of the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act dates back to medieval English monarchs, the False Claims Act was enacted during the Civil War. Known as the “Abe Lincoln Law,” it confirms that cheating the government is not a 20th century development, but a venerable tradition. Among those who evaded False Claims Act liability during the Civil War, but whose misdeeds are part of the False Claims Act’s legislative history, was “Commodore” Cornelius Vanderbilt, the patriarch of what was one of the wealthiest families in America during the 19th century. Vanderbilt’s fortune began modestly with a Staten Island ferry he operated as a young man. Despite his personal knowledge of vessels and their seaworthiness, he nonetheless sold the Union Navy ships with rotting hulls–at exorbitant prices–but vouching for their quality. In the first 80 years of the False Claims Act, qui tam plaintiffs or “relators,” as they are commonly termed, could bring “parasitic cases.” These w
