How does a Relator File a Complaint?
Section 3730(b)(1) states the basic authority of a relator to act on behalf of the United States. Please note that the relator cannot dismiss an action on its own; the Attorney General must consent. Section 3730(b)(2) specifies the procedures that must be followed in terms of serving the government with the qui tam complaint. Briefly, the relator files a complaint under seal, serves the Attorney General and the appropriate U.S. Attorney, and in addition furnishes the government with a statement of material evidence in support of the complaint’s allegations of fraud. The government has an initial 60 days to investigate the allegations. However, pursuant to Section 3730(b)(3), the Department of Justice may (and almost always does) request extensions of time. Eventually, the government must either “intervene” and litigate the case, or “decline” to do so and let the relator pursue it. Section 3730(b)(4). Once a complaint has been filed, “no person other than the government may intervene or
