United States v. Regents of the Univ. of Cal.,
No. C-96-1703 WHO, C-01-1893 WHO (N.D. Cal. Sept. 13, 2001)

In this FCA action, the government intervened and reached a $22.5 million settlement with the university hospital. Two relators then filed a joint motion seeking to obtain a 20 percent share of the settlement proceeds. The government argued that the relators were not entitled to share in the settlement proceeds in this case because the hospital was a state actor and could not be subject to a qui tam action by a private individual. The relators argued that once the government intervened in the matter, they were then entitled to share in the settlement. The United States District Court, Northern District, California agreed with the government. It held that a private individual could not sue the state under the False Claims Act, irrespective of whether the government intervened.