Cochise Consultancy, Inc. v. United States ex rel. Hunt

Background

A private whistleblower, Billy Joe Hunt, sued two defense contractors, alleging they submitted false claims for security work in Iraq from before January 2006 until early 2007. Hunt says he told federal agents about the scheme in a November 30, 2010 interview and filed his qui tam complaint on November 27, 2013. The Government declined to join the case. Hunt conceded the six-year limit had passed but argued the three-year rule should run from his 2010 interview. Lower courts split on how to read the statute, so the Supreme Court reviewed the question.

Reasoning

The Court addressed two questions: whether the two limitations in 31 U.S.C. § 3731(b) apply to whistleblower-led suits when the Government does not intervene, and whether a private relator counts as "the official of the United States" whose knowledge starts the three-year clock. The Court read the statute’s plain text to cover all "civil action[s] under section 3730," including relator suits, and rejected arguments that subsection (b)(2) applies only when the Government is a party. The Court also held that a private relator is not an "official of the United States" because relators are private persons, are not charged with responsibility to act for the Government, and the statute’s wording points to a governmental official.

Real world impact

The decision means the three-year limitations period in § 3731(b)(2) is triggered by the knowledge of the Government official charged to act, not by a relator’s private knowledge. The ruling resolves a split in appeals courts and clarifies when whistleblowers must file under the False Claims Act. This interpretation narrows the ability of relators to rely on their own discovery to extend filing deadlines.