The Man from Atlantis

The Fifth Circuit affirmed a summary judgment for the defendants in the FCA case of Abbott v. BP Exploration & Production; after describing the alleged fact issues about “whether engineers approved the various stages of construction of the Atlantis [offshore oil platform],” it noted: “Rarely does the pursuit of an individual’s FCA claims lead to an investigation requested by Congress. But that is the case with these Plaintiffs, whose insistence on the alleged issues with the Atlantis led to Congressional hearings, an investigation by a federal agency, and the [De[artment of the Interior] Report,” which “found no grounds to suspend the operation of the Atlantis or revoke BP’s designation as an operator.” No. 16-20028 (March 14, 2017).