Publications

California Attorney General Kamala Harris announced on May 23, 2011 that she is creating a team of seventeen lawyers and eight special agents to pursue sellers of mortgage backed securities and alleged perpetrators of mortgage-related fraud using California’s False Claims Act.  She explained that the False Claims Act is “one of the very powerful tools that California uniquely has.”  Indeed, just days prior to the Attorney General’s announcement, on May 19, 2011, California formally approved a $241 million settlement with Quest Diagnostics, Inc. to resolve a False Claims Act case alleging that Quest overcharged California’s Medi-Cal program.  This bulletin discusses the California False Claims Act, its distinctive provisions, and what they mean for companies doing business with the State at a time when the economic climate gives members of the qui tam bar compelling incentives to find new ways to help the State generate revenue through litigation.