What time period applies—is there a statute of limitations?
The False Claims Act statute of limitations set forth in 31 U.S.C. § 3731(b)(2) is 6 years. But, it has a tolling provision that prevents the statute from running until the Government knew or should have known of the facts, up to a maximum of 10 years from the date of the violation. This applies to both the Government and a qui tam relator. Moreover, many Government contracts last for many years and are not finally “closed out” until months or years after most of the work was completed. This could extend for many years the time period when a case can be brought.
