What Happens After You File a Qui Tam Complaint? The Seal Period, Explained

You’ve made the decision to come forward. Your attorney has prepared the complaint, gathered your disclosure statement, and filed your case in federal court under the False Claims Act (31 U.S.C. §§ 3729–3733). And then — nothing happens. No hearing date. No defendant response. No public record you can point to. For many whistleblowers, this is the most disorienting part of the entire process: the case exists, but it’s invisible. That’s not a delay or a mistake. It’s called the seal period, and understanding what it is — and what it requires of you — is essential to protecting your case.

What the Seal Actually Is

Under the False Claims Act, every qui tam complaint is filed under seal, meaning it is not served on the defendant and is not part of the public court record. This isn’t optional or something your attorney requests — it’s built into the statute itself (31 U.S.C. § 3730(b)(2)). The moment your complaint is filed, the court file is sealed, and it stays that way while the government decides what to do with your case.

Alongside the complaint, your attorney also submits a written disclosure of substantially all material evidence to the U.S. Department of Justice — essentially, a roadmap of the fraud, showing the government exactly what you know and how you know it. That disclosure statement is not filed with the court and is not part of the seal itself, but it’s what the government actually reads and investigates during this period.

Why the Seal Exists

The seal serves two purposes, and both matter to you directly:

• It gives the government room to investigate quietly. Health care fraud investigations often involve subpoenas, witness interviews, data analysis, and coordination between the DOJ, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and agencies like HHS-OIG or the FBI. None of that works well if the target of the investigation already knows a lawsuit is pending and can start destroying records or coaching witnesses.
• It protects you. While the case is under seal, the defendant doesn’t know you’ve filed — or in many cases, doesn’t know a case exists at all. That confidentiality buys the government time to build a case before anyone has a reason to retaliate against you specifically because of the lawsuit.

How Long Does the Seal Last?

The statute sets an initial seal period of 60 days. In practice, almost no case actually resolves in 60 days. Health care fraud investigations are document-intensive and often span multiple providers, billing systems, and years of claims data. It is routine — not a red flag — for the government to request extensions of the seal, sometimes repeatedly, while the investigation continues. Seal periods lasting one to three years are common in complex Medicare and Medicaid fraud cases; some run longer.

During this time, your attorney will typically stay in contact with the assigned Assistant U.S. Attorney or DOJ trial attorney, respond to follow-up questions, help identify additional witnesses or documents, and monitor the case for developments — even though, from the outside, it looks like nothing is happening.

What You Cannot Do While the Case Is Sealed

This is the part that catches whistleblowers off guard, and it deserves to be said plainly: the seal binds you too.

While your case is under seal, you generally cannot:

• Tell your employer, coworkers, or the defendant that you’ve filed a lawsuit
• Discuss the existence or contents of the complaint with the media
• Post about the case, even vaguely, on social media
• Share the disclosure statement or complaint with anyone outside your legal team and the government

Violating the seal isn’t a technical foot-fault. Courts have dismissed qui tam cases, denied relator’s share awards, or otherwise sanctioned relators for seal violations — even when the underlying fraud allegations were accurate. If you’re unsure whether something is safe to say, the answer is to ask your attorney first, not after.

Importantly, staying quiet about the lawsuit does not mean you lose your legal protections. The False Claims Act’s anti-retaliation provisions (31 U.S.C. § 3730(h)) still protect you if your employer takes adverse action against you for activity connected to reporting suspected fraud, separate from the sealed complaint itself. That distinction — what you can discuss internally about the underlying concerns versus what you must keep confidential about the litigation — is something to walk through carefully with your attorney before the seal period begins, not after a question puts you on the spot.

What Happens When the Seal Ends

Eventually, the government reaches a decision, and one of three things happens:

1. The government intervenes. The DOJ decides to take over prosecution of the case, either in whole or in part. This is generally the outcome relators hope for — it means the government is committing its own resources and litigation power to the case, and historically, intervened cases recover far more often than non-intervened ones.

2. The government declines to intervene. This does not mean the case is dead. Declination is common, and it simply means the government is stepping back and allowing the relator to prosecute the case independently, with private counsel, under the False Claims Act’s qui tam provisions. Many declined cases still go on to significant recoveries.

3. The case is voluntarily dismissed or settled before either of the above formally occurs, sometimes as part of resolving the investigation.

Once the seal is lifted, the complaint becomes part of the public record, the defendant is served, and the litigation moves forward in the open — either with the government leading or with your attorney litigating on your behalf.

What You Should Be Doing During the Seal Period

The seal period can feel like waiting in the dark, but it’s not a passive time. Whistleblowers who protect their cases best during this stretch typically:

• Keep documenting anything relevant that continues to happen at work, without discussing the lawsuit itself
• Preserve — but do not remove or copy improperly — any records that support their knowledge of the fraud
• Route any contact from investigators, coworkers asking questions, or media inquiries through their attorney
• Continue normal job performance and avoid any appearance of retaliatory conduct toward the employer
• Check in periodically with counsel rather than assuming silence means the case has stalled

Talk to a Michigan Qui Tam Attorney

The seal period is often the longest and least understood phase of a qui tam case, but it’s also where careful handling matters most — a single misstep in confidentiality can put months or years of investigation at risk. At Szura & Delonis, PLC, we guide Michigan whistleblowers through every stage of the False Claims Act process, from the initial disclosure statement through the seal period and beyond, drawing on the same health care regulatory background we use to advise providers on Medicare and Medicaid compliance.

If you believe you’ve witnessed Medicare, Medicaid, or other government fraud, a confidential conversation with our firm costs nothing and creates no obligation. Learn more about our Qui Tam and False Claims Act practice, or call us directly to discuss your situation.

Phone: (248) 716-3600

Email: admin@szuradelonis.com

Address: 29777 Telegraph Rd #2401, Southfield, MI 48034

This article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The handling of a sealed qui tam complaint is highly fact-specific and governed by strict confidentiality requirements. If you believe you have information about health care fraud, consult an attorney about your specific situation before taking any action.