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05.27.15

A U.S. Supreme Court decision won't extend the statute of limitations in fraud lawsuits, but the ruling could make it easier, in some cases, for whistle-blowers to file fraud lawsuits over issues already brought to court. In a unanimous decision, the justices partly reversed and partly affirmed a lower court's decision, sending the case, Kellogg, Brown & Root Services Inc. v. United States ex. rel. Carter, back to the lower court.

They decided that the Wartime Suspension of Limitations Act extends statutes of limitations only in criminal cases during times of war, not civil cases such as those filed by whistle-blowers under the False Claims Act.

David Chizewer, a principal at Goldberg Kohn, said “What this ruling by the Supreme Court does is essentially pave a wider path for the case that is most likely to be successful to see the light of day and not to be barred by an earlier filed case that may have had less of a chance of success."