The U.S. Department of Justice building is pictured in Washington, U.S., March 21, 2019. REUTERS/Leah Millis

(Reuters) - A whistleblower, accusing manufacturers of multiple sclerosis drugs and pharmacy benefit managers of colluding to defraud Medicare, failed on Friday to convince a federal appeals court to revive his lawsuit that the U.S. Department of Justice had successfully moved to get tossed.

The 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston upheld a lower court judge's decision to dismiss at the department's request a lawsuit that former investment fund executive John Borzilleri filed against companies like Bayer AG and Pfizer Inc.

In doing so, the 1st Circuit added its voice to an increasingly complex split among appellate courts over what is required for the department to dismiss a case over a whistleblower's objections.

U.S. Circuit Judge Kermit Lipez said in the 1st Circuit's view, the government must provide reasons for seeking the dismissal so the whistleblower at a hearing can attempt to convince it to withdraw the motion.

But Lipez said a judge should grant the government's motion unless "the government is transgressing constitutional limitations or perpetrating a fraud on the court."

Lipez said Borzilleri's arguments, though, amounted ultimately to "no more than disagreements with the government's judgment" about the potential for success in his case.

Mary Ann Smith, Borzilleri's lawyer, and the companies' lawyers did not respond to requests for comment. The...

Read Full Story: https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/dojs-dismissal-whistleblowers-fraud-...