Qui tam

In common law, a qui tam action is a mechanism allowing a private individual who assists a prosecution to receive all or part of the damages or financial penalties the government recovers, taking its name from a Latin phrase for someone who sues both for the king and for themselves. The writ fell into disuse in England and Wales after the Common Informers Act 1951 but remains active in the United States, most notably under the federal False Claims Act, where a private whistleblower known as a relator may sue on the government's behalf over fraud against it. Other qui tam provisions have existed in areas ranging from arming vessels against friendly nations to false patent marking, though a 2011 federal court ruling and subsequent legislation effectively ended qui tam remedies for false patent marking. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/