UPPER SAUCON TWP., Pa. – A federal appeals court has denied a whistleblower’s attempt to revive a claim against the medical device company Olympus. 

Paul Lisenby worked for Olympus as the global head of product development from May 2022 to March 2024, when he was terminated. He worked primarily from his home in Florida, although Olympus’ global headquarters are in Japan, and its U.S. operations are based in Upper Saucon Township, Lehigh County. 

Lisenby claimed he was fired shortly after raising concerns that Olympus had violated U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulations with respect to design quality and product testing, a violation of the False Claims Act (FCA).

Lisenby also filed claims under the Pennsylvania Whistleblower Law and Florida Private Whistleblowers Act.

A federal judge dismissed the claims in February of 2025, saying Lisenby failed to establish that Olympus violated the FCA by knowingly presenting a false or fraudulent claim to the U.S. government. The judge also wrote that Lisenby, by failing to demonstrate a “nexus” between potential safety issues and a specific FCA violation, failed to demonstrate that he engaged in protected activity.

Now the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third District has upheld that ruling, noting that the amended complaint “lacks allegations of any such belief” that Lisenby was motivated by “an objectively reasonable belief that the employer has submitted, or will submit, false or fraudulent claims for payment to the federal government.”

Instead, Lisenby’s allegations, the judges wrote in their ruling, suggest that he was only concerned “about Olympus’s alleged FDA regulatory violations and the attendant risks to patient safety, not fraud committed against the government.”

According to court paperwork, Lisenby’s concerns stemmed from his investigation of the failure of an Olympus product called the Quick-Clip Pro 2 (QCP2) which is used in endoscopic procedures.

Among those concerns was “a lack of quality management controls and testing to ensure that the product was safe for clinical use in patients,” the paperwork said.

Lisenby met with several company representatives and proposed a solution that was rebuffed before his employment was terminated, the lawsuit said.

69 News reached out to Olympus for its reaction to the latest court ruling. A company spokesperson provided this statement:

“We are pleased with the court’s decision. However, Olympus cannot comment further as further litigation is pending.”