This blog entry was written by Connie N. Bertram, who represented the defendant contractors in the proceedings before the district court.

Plaintiff, former engineer for defendant Impact Science & Technology, Inc. (IST), brought suit against IST and related entities under the whistleblower provisions of the False Claims Act (FCA) in 2007.  A federal district court in Maryland granted summary judgment in favor of IST, finding that the plaintiff had not satisfied any of the elements of a claim under the FCA.  The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court’s decision on March 21, finding that the plaintiff’s internal complaints and discussions regarding heat testing on module used in a CIED system and discussions with the government about those complaints were not activities protected under the FCA.