Whistleblower Lawsuit Pays Off Big For Former GSK Employee

November 22nd, 2010. By Kristine B

Talk about your big payouts. A woman who acted as a whistleblower against GlaxoSmithKline will receive a whopping $96 million for her role in bringing the company to justice. Who knows, maybe eventually an Erin Brockovich-style movie will be made about her, too. This week, Pleading Ignorance looks into the story behind the whistleblower who helped officials in their case against GlaxoSmithKline—and what qui tam is all about.                                                 

The woman who acted as whistleblower in this case was Cheryl Eckard, who worked at GlaxoSmithKline from 1992 through 2003. When she was asked to visit the now-closed plant at Cidra, Puerto Rico, following citations for violations at the plant, Eckard was a manager of global quality assurance for GlaxoSmithKline. 

According to The Wall Street Journal (10/28/10), Eckard found massive problems at the Cidra plant, leading her to make recommendations to her superiors about how to fix things up. Those recommendations included to stop shipping all products from the plant and to notify the FDA about product problems, such as problems where drugs of different types were mixed up in the same bottle. 

But, according to the lawsuit, Eckard’s superiors ignored her, leading to her eventually telling them she would not be part of a cover-up. In 2003, Eckard was reportedly fired. Despite the firing, she says she continued to try to convince GlaxoSmithKline to make changes to the Cidra plant. It’s a screenplay waiting to happen: Woman sent to investigate plant, woman makes recommendations, woman is fired after following up on recommendations, woman is repeatedly ignored, woman files lawsuit against large corporation… 

Eventually, Eckard called the FDA, which led to the FDA investigation. Meanwhile, Eckard filed a lawsuit against GlaxoSmithKline under the US False Claims Act. Then, in 2010, GlaxoSmithKline agreed to pay $750 million to settle charges of allowing adulterated drugs onto the market. Of that, Eckard will receive $96 million, reportedly the largest award given to a single whistleblower in US history. 

A provision of the False Claims Act, also known as the Qui Tam Statute, allows private citizens to sue a person or company that knowingly submits false bills to the federal government. Although the qui tam lawsuit is filed by a private citizen, it is done on behalf of the federal government. Furthermore, it protects plaintiffs who are demoted, suspended or discriminated against because they have filed a claim under the False Claims Act. If a qui tam suit is successful, as was the case here, the whistleblower is entitled to between 15 and 30 percent of the money the government recovers. The whistleblower is also eligible for between $5,000 and $10,000 per false claim. 

A lawsuit filed under the False Claims Act is first served on the government and is not served on the defendant until the court orders it be served. The whistleblower is not allowed to discuss the lawsuit while the government investigates the allegations detailed in the complaint. 

The sad thing is that if GlaxoSmithKline had done the right thing from the start and listened to Eckard’s concerns, the lawsuit could have been avoided. Unfortunately, many companies see little or no benefit in doing the right thing, until doing the wrong thing costs them a lot of money. 

Pleading Ignorance cheers Ms. Eckard, who continued to fight to ensure the right thing was done, even when it meant she lost her job. Sometimes, good things happen to people who fight for them.

Tags: GlaxoSmithKline, GSK, Qui Tam Lawsuit, Whistleblower

This was posted on Monday, November 22nd, 2010 at 2:22 pm and is filed under Emerging Issues, Pleading Ignorance, Whistleblower . Feel free to respond, or trackback. Read our comments policy.