Student Aid Lenders Settle Whistleblower Jon Oberg’s False Claims Act Qui Tam Action for $57.75 million

Washington, D.C. – As announced by the U.S. Department of Justice, four student aid lenders paid $57.75 million to resolve The Employment Law Group® law firm client Dr. Jon Oberg’s False Claims Act qui tam action alleging that lenders created billing systems allowing them to receive improperly inflated interest rate subsidies from the Department of Education.

Congress established the subsidies in the 1980s, but later passed legislation to begin phasing them out.  In 2003, Dr. Oberg reported to his boss at the Department of Education an unexpected increase in the number of student loans qualifying for these subsidies.  When the Department of Education failed to pursue the matter directly, Dr. Oberg brought his qui tam action on their behalf, leading to the return of millions of dollars to the Department of Education.  As Assistant Attorney General Tony West pointed out in announcing the settlement, “Whistleblowers like Dr. Oberg are critical to [the Department of Justice’s] efforts to recover taxpayer money lost to waste, fraud, and abuse.”

The Employment Law Group® represented Dr. Jon Oberg.

About The Employment Law Group®

The Employment Law Group® is one of the Washington, D.C. area’s premier employment law firms with offices in San Francisco and Los Angeles.  The attorneys at The Employment Law Group® collectively have over 70 years of experience representing whistleblowers in False Claims Act, Sarbanes-Oxley Act, whistleblower retaliation, wrongful discharge, discrimination, and unpaid wage claims.

R. Scott Oswald
Tel: 202.331.2806
soswald@employmentlawgroup.com

David Scher
Tel: 202.261.2802
dscher@employmentlawgroup.com

www.employmentlawgroup.com

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Tagged: False Claims Act (FCA), Whistleblower Laws (Federal)