In its recent decision, People ex rel. Ellinger v. Magill, et al., —Cal.Rptr.3d—, No. E076378, 2022 WL 1077988 (Cal. Ct. App., Mar. 18, 2022), the California Court of Appeal refused to extend liability under California’s Insurance Frauds Prevention Act (IFPA) to an insurer’s claims handling practices. Insurance Code Section 1871.7 allows a party to file a qui tam action[1] for violations of certain insurance claim related conduct described in the rule itself. Section 1871.7 also incorporates prohibited conduct from other statutes, such as California Penal Code Section 550, as permissible bases for the qui tam action. A person who violates Section 1871.7 is subject to “a civil penalty of not less than five thousand dollars ($5,000) nor more than ten…
