United States of America v. Porifera Inc

` 2 3 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 6 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, et al., Case No. 19-cv-00765-HSG

Plaintiffs, ORDER DENYING MOTION FOR

SUMMARY JUDGMENT

v. Re: Dkt. No. 64 PORIFERA INC, Defendant.

12 Pending before the Court is Defendant Porifera, Inc.’s motion for summary judgment. Dkt. No. 64. The Court finds this matter appropriate for disposition without oral argument and the matter is deemed submitted. See Civil L.R. 7-1(b). For the reasons detailed below, the Court DENIES the motion. I. BACKGROUND In February 2019, Plaintiff Joseph Mendelssohn filed a qui tam action under seal pursuant to 31 U.S.C. § 3730(b). The United States government chose not to intervene in this matter, and the case was later unsealed in November 2020. See Dkt. No. 12. As explained in more detail below, the facts in this case are largely disputed. However, the parties agree that Plaintiff was the Vice President of Business Development and Administration for Porifera, and worked…