Why do qui tam actions happen in civil court? Isn defrauding the government a crime?
In some cases, the defendant’s actions leading to the qui tam action violate both criminal law and the federal False Claims Act. The government initiates criminal cases while private parties initiate civil qui tam actions. Private parties’ initiation of qui tam actions can uncover fraud that the government might never have discovered. In addition, the burden of proof is lower in civil cases than in criminal cases.
