State of Tennessee ex rel. Stephen Eimers v. Lindsay Corporation et al.

The plaintiff filed a qui tam action on behalf of the State of Tennessee against several defendants who designed and manufactured guardrails that were installed on Tennessee roads. The defendants moved to dismiss the case based on the expiration of the Tennessee False Claims Act’s three-year statute of limitations. The plaintiff responded, inter alia, that the statute of limitations had been tolled while an earlier federal action involving this claim had been pending. The defendants disagreed, arguing that the plaintiff was not entitled to tolling under 28 U.S.C. § 1367(d) because he had voluntarily dismissed all of his claims in the federal action. But the plaintiff asserted that he was not entitled to voluntarily dismiss his claims in the federal action due to specific requirements of the federal False Claims Act. The trial court denied the motion to dismiss but granted an interlocutory appeal to this Court. We hold that the plaintiff voluntarily dismissed all of his claims in the federal action and that he therefore was not entitled to tolling under 28 U.S.C. § 1367(d). So we reverse.