Zafirov v. Florida Medical Associates

The district court in this case held that the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act violate the Constitution’s Appointments Clause, by allowing a non-government employee to enforce federal law. The court’s ruling, however, rested largely on a misconstruction of the Supreme Court’s decision in Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1 (1976). Supporting the qui tam relator on appeal, Public Citizen filed an amicus brief explaining that Buckley did not decide the question posed here, which is whether, or with what limitations, individuals who are not government officials at all may be empowered to bring litigation to enforce federal law, and that Buckley does not support the court’s decision.