by Joshua Drew, Ian Herbert, Bradley Markano, and Connor Farrell
Left to right: Joshua Drew, Ian Herbert, Bradley Markano, and Connor Farrell (photos courtesy of Miller & Chevalier)
On July 14, 2025, Janssen filed an appeal to the Third Circuit challenging what it characterized in its brief as the “largest ever” judgment under the federal False Claims Act (FCA): approximately $1.6 billion, including over $1.2 billion in civil penalties and $360 million in treble damages. The scope of liability imposed on the healthcare company, along with unique facts underlying the case, present several important constitutional issues, including Article II-based challenges that the FCA’s qui tam provisions improperly delegate to relators the executive authority to pursue punitive quasi-criminal penalties, as well as whether the penalties imposed violate the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause or Eighth Amendment’s Excessive Fines Clause.