Fortinet Qui Tam Settlement
Case name: United States ex rel. Yuxin “Jay” Fang v.
Fortinet, Inc., et al.
Case type: Whistleblower & Qui Tam
Filed in: [U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California]
Docket: [Case no. 16-314]
Case Summary
In April 2019, Sanford Heisler Sharp and the U.S. Government settled a whistleblower case brought under the False Claims Act (“FCA”) with Fortinet, a publicly held network security company headquartered in Sunnyvale, Ca. As part of the settlement, Fortinet agreed to pay the Government $545,000. The Relator, represented by Sanford Heisler Sharp, received $103,550, or 19% of the total settlement.
The case alleged that Fortinet labeled products or omitted labels of certain limited products as to falsely represent their country of origin and thus compliance with the federal Trade Agreements Act. The products at issue in the case were eventually sold to the U.S. Government, resulting in fraudulent claims for payment by Fortinet.
Procedural History
Attorneys Involved in the Case
John McKnight
Washington, DC Partner
H. Vincent McKnight Jr.
Managing Partner of the DC Office and Co-Ombudsperson