Source: https://www.hbsslaw.com/hagens-berman-international-whistleblower-center/fcaqui-tam-state-statutes/montana-false-claims-act
Timestamp: 2019-04-24 02:01:06+00:00

Document:
(ii) will reimburse a contractor, grantee, or other person for any portion of the money, property, or services requested or demanded.
(5) “Material” means having a natural tendency to influence or be capable of influencing the payment or receipt of money, property, or services.
(d) the retention of any overpayment.
(7) “Person” includes any natural person, corporation, firm, association, organization, partnership, limited liability company, business, trust, or other legal or business entity.
(8) “State” means the state of Montana.
§ 17-8-403. False claims — procedures — penalties.
(3) A person who violates the provisions of this section is also liable to the governmental entity for the expenses, costs, and attorney fees of the civil action brought to recover the penalty or damages.
(4) Liability under this section is joint and several for any act committed by two or more persons.
(5) This section does not apply to claims, records, or statements made in relation to claims filed with the state compensation insurance fund under Title 39, chapter 71, or to claims, records, payments, or statements made under the tax laws contained in Title 15 or 16 or made to the department of natural resources and conservation under Title 77.
(b) The production of a record pursuant to Article II, section 9, of the Montana constitution or Title 2, chapter 6, is not a public disclosure for purposes of this section.
(ii) has knowledge that is independent of and materially adds to the publicly disclosed allegations and transactions and voluntarily provided the information to the governmental entity before filing an action.
(7) A person may not file a complaint or civil action brought under 17-8-406 against the state or an officer or employee of the state arising from conduct by the officer or employee within the scope of the officer’s or employee’s duties to the state unless the officer or employee has a financial interest in the conduct upon which the complaint or civil action arises.
(8) The amount of the civil penalty set forth in subsections (1) and (2) must be adjusted for inflation in a manner consistent with the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act of 1990, Public Law 101-410.
(9) If a governmental entity does not intervene, the person who initiated the action has the same right to conduct the action as the government attorney would have had if the governmental entity had intervened, including the right to inspect government records and interview officers and employees of the governmental entity.
§ 17-8-404. Limitation of actions.
(3) If the governmental entity elects to intervene in any action brought under 17-8-406, the complaint in intervention must relate back to the filing date of the original complaint to the extent that the governmental entity’s claim arises out of the conduct, transactions, or occurrences set forth or attempted to be set forth in the original complaint.
§ 17-8-405. Investigation and civil action by government attorney.
History: En. Sec. 5, Ch. 465, L. 2005; amd. Sec. 4, Ch. 64, L. 2009.
§ 17-8-406. Complaint by person — civil action.
§ 17-8-407. Dismissal of civil action.
§ 17-8-408. Repealed. Sec. 11, Ch. 64, L. 2009.
§ 17-8-409. Burden of proof — effect of criminal conviction.
§ 17-8-410. Distribution of damages and civil penalty.
(5) Whether or not the government attorney proceeds with the action, if the court finds that the action was brought by a person who planned and initiated the violation of 17-8-403, the court may, to the extent the court considers appropriate, reduce or eliminate the share of the proceeds of the action that the person would otherwise receive pursuant to subsections (1) through (4) of this section, taking into account the role of the person in advancing the case to litigation and any relevant circumstances pertaining to the violation. If the person bringing the action is convicted of criminal conduct arising from the person’s role in the violation of this part, the person must be dismissed from the civil action and may not receive any share of the proceeds of the action. The dismissal does not prejudice the right of the government attorney to continue the action.
§ 17-8-411. Costs and attorney fees.
The governmental entity that filed a civil action or intervened is entitled to reasonable costs and attorney fees if the action is settled favorably for the governmental entity or the governmental entity prevails. In an action in which outside counsel is engaged by a government attorney, the costs and attorney fees awarded to that counsel must equal the outside counsel’s charges reasonably incurred for costs and attorney fees in prosecuting the action. In any other actions in which costs and attorney fees are awarded to the governmental entity, they must be calculated by reference to the hourly rate charged by the department of justice agency legal services bureau for the provision of legal services to state agencies, multiplied by the number of attorney hours devoted to the prosecution of the action, plus the actual cost of any expenses reasonably incurred in the prosecution of the action. A person who is a plaintiff or coplaintiff is entitled to reasonable expenses that the court finds to have been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable costs and attorney fees, if the action is settled favorably for the governmental entity or the governmental entity prevails in the action. A defendant in a civil action brought pursuant to this part who prevails in an action that is not settled and that the court finds was clearly frivolous or brought solely for harassment purposes is entitled to the defendant’s reasonable costs and attorney fees. If the governmental entity does not intervene, it is not responsible for any of the defendant’s fees and costs.
§ 17-8-412. Retaliatory actions prohibited — remedies.
(1) A governmental entity, private entity, or person may not adopt or enforce a rule, regulation, or policy preventing an employee, agent, or contractor from disclosing information to a government or law enforcement agency with regard to or from acting in furtherance of an investigation of a violation of 17-8-403 or an action brought pursuant to 17-8-405 or 17-8-406.
(2) A governmental entity, private entity, or person may not discharge, demote, suspend, threaten, harass, or deny promotion to or in any other manner discriminate against an employee, agent, or contractor in the terms and conditions of employment, agency, or contract because of the disclosure by the employee, agent, or contractor of information to a government or law enforcement agency pertaining to a violation of 17-8-403.
(3) An employee, contractor, or agent is entitled to all relief necessary to make the employee, contractor, or agent whole if the employee, contractor, or agent is discharged, demoted, suspended, threatened, harassed, or in any other manner discriminated against in the terms and conditions of employment because of lawful acts done by the employee, contractor, or agent or associated others in furtherance of an action under this part or other efforts to stop one or more violations of this part.
(4) Relief under subsection (3) includes reinstatement with the same seniority status the employee, contractor, or agent would have had but for the discrimination, two times the amount of back pay, interest on the back pay, and compensation for any special damages sustained as a result of the discrimination, including litigation costs and reasonable attorney fees. A civil action may be brought in the appropriate district court of the state for the relief provided in this subsection.
(5) A civil action under this section may not be brought more than 3 years after the date on which the retaliation occurred.
§ 17-8-413. Settlement by government attorney.
§§ 17-8-414 through 17-8-415 reserved.
(5) the number of qui tam cases pending in other jurisdictions involving the state in the previous calendar year.

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