EMC pays $87.5 million to settle false claims case

EMC Corp., the world's biggest maker of storage computers, paid the U.S. $87.5 million to settle a lawsuit alleging that the company violated the False Claims Act and the federal Anti- Kickback Act, the U.S. Justice Department said.

Locally, EMC has operations in Lisle.

EMC misrepresented its commercial pricing practices, inducing the General Services Administration to enter into in a contract at an inflated price. The company, based in Hopkinton, Massachusetts, wrongfully claimed it would conduct a price comparison to ensure the government paid a lower rate, according to the Justice Department.

Last year, the Justice Department joined an existing lawsuit that alleges EMC made improper payments to its partners and failed to disclose its commercial pricing practices. Yesterday's statement from the Justice Department completes a settlement EMC announced in February.

"The Justice Department is acting to ensure that government purchasers of commercial products can be assured that they are getting the prices they are entitled to," said Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department's Civil Division.

The case is Rille v. Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., 09cv628, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia (Alexandria).