Fortune 500 Software Company to Pay $11 Million to Settle False Claims Act Case
Today, CA Technologies, a Fortune 500 company, has agreed to resolve a False Claims Act Complaint for $11 million. The crux of the Complaint, alleges that CA Technologies knowingly double billed its government clients for software renewals on contracts from 2001 through 2009.
The case was filed in 2006, by a courageous whistleblower, Ann Marie Shaw, a former employee at CA Technologies. According to the unsealed lawsuit, CA Technologies utilized two methods to defraud its government clients. In an effort to double bill, the company targeted its clients with expiring maintenance plans on its software products. The company would then solicit maintenance renewals from such clients. However, as alleged by Ms. Shaw, unbeknownst to the clients, when they did renew, in lieu of starting the renewal date at the expiration of the clients’ existing plans, CA Technologies set the renewal period to commence on the day it received the order. As a direct result of this pervasive scheme, the government was double billed for two maintenance plans until the expiration of the original plan.
In addition to double billing, the Complaint further alleges that the company breached a contract with the Department of Defense that provided for prepaid software. Unbeknownst to the government, the company diverted any requests for the prepaid software to third-party vendors, thus again causing the government to incur additional and unnecessary expenses.
Contrary to the beliefs of many, blowing the whistle on your employer is never an easy decision to make. It often involves risking one’s livelihood to stand up for what is right. Understanding the same, I applaud Ms. Shaw for her efforts leading to the settlement of this matter. As a U.S. citizen, she deserves my gratitude.
Young Law Group is a nationwide leader in whistleblower representation and has successfully represented individuals in countless qui tam cases for over a decade. Young Law Group attorneys represented whistleblowers in two of the largest False Claims Act settlements in history. Our firm takes every inquiry seriously and considers confidentiality a top priority.
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