In United States, ex rel. Jesse Polansky, M.D., M.P.H., Petitioner v. Executive Health Resources, Inc., et al., the Supreme Court will decide whether the government has authority to dismiss a False Claims Act suit after initially declining to intervene, and what standard applies if the government has that authority.

The False Claims Act (FCA), 31 U.S.C. 3729 et seq., provides civil liability for those that knowingly defraud the federal government, and permits a private party (known as a “relator”) to file a qui tam lawsuit under seal “in the name of the Government.” The petitioner, a doctor consultant, filed a qui tam FCA suit in 2012, alleging that the respondent, a physician advisor company that provides review and billing certifications to medical providers that use Medicaid, was fraudulently billing the government for inpatient services that should have been certified as out-patient services. When a qui tam complaint is filed, after investigating the allegations, the government may “elect to intervene and proceed with the action.” If the government declines to intervene, the relator may proceed with the litigation, but the government remains a real party in interest.

The government investigated the claims for two years before declining to intervene. The litigation then continued for several more years until 2019, when the government filed a motion to dismiss the action under 31 U.S.C. § 3730(c)(2)(A), which provides that “[t]he Government may dismiss the action...

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