KBR Defeats Whistleblower’s Challenge to Attorneys’ Fees Ruling

A False Claims Act whistleblower isn’t entitled to any attorneys’ fees stemming from a 2022 settlement with defense contractor Kellogg, Brown & Root Inc., the Fifth Circuit affirmed Thursday.

A Texas federal district court correctly denied the estate of Bud Conyers fees because he didn’t receive any share of the nearly $14 million settlement with the government, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit said in a per curiam opinion. “Since Conyers’ claims were not settled, he did not receive a relator’s share and is not entitled to attorney fees,” the opinion said.

• Conyers, who had ...