DEFECTIVE “SPY” SATELLITES SOLD TO U.S. GOVERNMENT

One of our attorneys represented scientist Robert Ferro in his False Claims Act case against Northrop Grumman (formerly TRW Inc.) alleging that they sold the government military and intelligence-gathering satellites that contained defective parts. When Ferro discovered the issue, TRW engineers not only did not disclose the problems, they threatened him and directed him not to report his findings to the government. Northrop Grumman ended up settling the case for $325 million, which was the largest whistleblower settlement by a defense contractor to date. $48.7 million went directly to Ferro.