United States of America Ex Rel. Joseph T. Siewick v. Jamieson Science and Engineering, Inc.

Opinion for the Court filed by Circuit Judge RANDOLPH.

RANDOLPH, Circuit Judge:

This appeal from an order of the district court, Oberdorfer, J., granting summary judgment raises the question whether a corporate shareholder and director may be considered the “employer” of a corporate employee within the meaning of the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. § 3730(h).

From May 1990 to December 1991, Dr. Joseph T. Siewick worked as a physicist for Jamieson Science and Engineering, Inc. (JSE), a Maryland corporation engaged in contract work for the Department of Defense’s Strategic Defense Initiative…