Government contracts can be massive documents filled with pages of terms and conditions and detailed specifications about how the contract must be performed. These specifications may dictate certain tests or inspections before the product or service is delivered to the government, or the sourcing of certain materials to be used in the item to be delivered. Whatever the express terms of the contract, the contractor is expected to follow the government’s specifications.
In the real world, of course, sometimes things come up that may require changes to what the contractor is doing. When they do, the government expects the contractor to obtain permission from the government before it deviates from those specifications in any real way, or otherwise keep the government informed about how something had to be done differently. Fraud may occur during the performance of a government contract if a contractor knowingly fails to follow specifications in the contract and conceals the change from the government. This may happen if a contractor skips certain steps in the process in order to avoid incurring those costs, or substitutes a different material or subcontractor, to increase its own profits. Even if the product or service is as good as the one contracted for, the contractor may still have committed a fraud on the government and may face liability under the False Claims Act for knowingly concealing that it was not adhering to the terms of the contract.
If you believe someone has engaged in one of these kinds of schemes – or some other scheme to commit a fraud on the government, and you would like to learn more about or would like to bring a whistleblower lawsuit, the qui tam lawyers at Keller Grover LLP can help you. These whistleblower lawyers understand qui tam litigation, including the whistleblower protection provisions, and strive to achieve the best possible results for their clients.