The concept of materiality is critical in criminal fraud and false statement cases, as well as civil fraud cases, because it is what distinguishes harmless misrepresentations from consequential ones.
A misrepresentation is...more
DOJ Files Complaint in AWP False Claims Act Suit Against Pharmaceutical Ingredient Seller -
On November 8, 2021, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it intervened in a qui tam suit and filed a False Claims Act...more
11/15/2021
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Bribery ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
FBI ,
Fraud ,
Medical Devices ,
Medicare ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Qui Tam ,
TRICARE ,
Whistleblowers
Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco’s Keynote Address at ABA's National Institute on White Collar Crime -
Despite having been delivered virtually, Deputy Attorney General Monaco’s message to white collar counsel came...more
The Department of Justice recently announced a new initiative that aims to hold government contractors accountable when they fail to meet required cybersecurity standards.
In announcing the “Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative” in...more
11/3/2021
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
DFARS ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Executive Orders ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraud ,
Joe Biden ,
SCOTUS ,
Universal Health Services Inc v United States ex rel Escobar
In November 2018, then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions launched the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) China Initiative, to prevent, combat, and prosecute theft of intellectual property, technology, trade secrets, and other...more
9/16/2021
/ China ,
Confidential Information ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dismissals ,
False Statements ,
Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Popular ,
Proprietary Information ,
Trade Secrets ,
Wire Fraud
On July 26, 2021, a bipartisan group of senators, led by Sen. Charles E. Grassley (R-Iowa), introduced the False Claims Amendments Act of 2021, a bill that would amend the False Claims Act (FCA) in several ways.
Four key...more
On August 2, 2021, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that Arriva Medical LLC (Arriva), once the nation’s largest Medicare mail-order diabetic testing supplier, and its parent company, Alere Inc., have agreed to...more
8/9/2021
/ Bribery ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Healthcare ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Kickbacks ,
Medicare ,
Money Laundering ,
Patients ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Settlement
On June 15, 2021, the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a False Claims Act (FCA) suit against Paksn Inc., Prema Thekkek and one of its owners, and seven skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) owned by Thekkek and/or operated by...more
6/18/2021
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Embezzlement ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) ,
Fraud ,
Insider Trading ,
Kickbacks ,
Medical Directors ,
Skilled Nursing Facility ,
Wire Fraud
COVID-19 Task Force Established to Enhance Enforcement Efforts against Fraud -
On May 17, 2021, the Department of Justice and U.S. Attorney General announced the establishment of the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force,...more
5/24/2021
/ Attorney General ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Falsified Documents ,
Fraud ,
Health Insurance ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Medicaid ,
OIG ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
SBA ,
Vaccinations ,
Wire Fraud
Where’s the Beef? Two Charged with $650 Million Cattle Ponzi Scheme -
On May 12, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that a federal district court in Colorado unsealed an indictment alleging that two individuals ran...more
5/17/2021
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Markets ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Investment Fraud ,
Investment Funds ,
Mergers ,
Misrepresentation ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Public Comment ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
State and Local Government ,
Stock Prices
Pharmaceutical Company Agrees to Pay $12.6 Million to Settle FCA Allegations Involving Kickbacks -
On Tuesday, the Department of Justice announced a $12.6 million settlement with Incyte Corporation, a Delaware...more
5/10/2021
/ Anti-Kickback Statute ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Frivolous Lawsuits ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Kickbacks ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Money Laundering ,
Settlement ,
Telemarketing ,
TRICARE
Government Contractor Pleads Guilty to Defrauding the Afghan Government of $100 Million -
The owner of Assist Consultants Incorporated (ACI), an Afghan company that has received over $250 million in US-funded contracts...more
5/3/2021
/ Afghanistan ,
Barbados ,
Bribery ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Intent to Defraud ,
Investment Adviser ,
IRS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Tax Evasion ,
USAID
Court Rules Prescription Drug Event and Enrollee Encounter Data Are 'Claims for Payment' Under the False Claims Act -
US District Judge Noel L. Hillman approved a whistleblower’s request to file a Fourth Amended Complaint...more
4/26/2021
/ Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Fair Market Value ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Kickbacks ,
Mail Fraud ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare Part A ,
Medicare Part D ,
Oil & Gas ,
Securities Fraud ,
Whistleblowers ,
Wire Fraud
The Department of Justice is on high alert for situations when hype turns to fraud at tech startups.
Journalist John Carreyrou, whose reporting helped expose what the SEC called an “elaborate, years-long fraud” by Theranos...more
Urgent Care Provider and Management Company to pay $22.5 Million to End FCA Claims -
South Carolina urgent care providers agreed to pay $22.5 million to resolve False Claims Act claims filed by two former employees. The...more
4/19/2021
/ Corporate Integrity Agreement ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Settlement ,
TRICARE ,
Whistleblowers ,
Wire Fraud
DOJ Updates Actions to Combat Fraud Related to COVID-19 -
On March 26, 2021, the Department of Justice provided an update on its criminal and civil enforcement efforts to combat fraud related to the COVID-19 pandemic....more
Sixth Circuit Splits with Tenth, Holds False Claims Act Anti-Retaliation Provision Extends to Post-Employment Retaliation -
On March 31, 2021, the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit addressed an issue of first...more
Senior DOJ Official Michael Granston Discusses COVID Relief Enforcement, Granston Memo, and other FCA Issues -
Michael Granston, the Deputy Assistant Attorney General of the DOJ Civil Division, sat down this week with Jody...more
3/29/2021
/ Conflicts of Interest ,
Consumer Protection Laws ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Fraudulent Procurement ,
Kickbacks ,
Manufacturers ,
Medical Devices ,
OIG ,
Private Equity Funds ,
Relief Measures ,
The Granston Memo ,
Turkey ,
USAID
Judge Rules Against Seizure of $330 Million Allegedly Connected to 1MDB Fraud Scheme -
On March 9, California District Court Judge Dale S. Fischer ruled that the government could not seize about $330 million in assets...more
3/22/2021
/ FinTech ,
Fraud ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Identity Theft ,
Kickbacks ,
Mail Fraud ,
Malaysia ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Money Laundering ,
Saudi Arabia ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Wire Fraud
Pharmacy Owner and Accountant Indicted in $134m Health Care Fraud Scheme -
Mohamed Mokbel and Fathy Elsafty, of Houston, Texas, were arrested on charges of money laundering, health care fraud, and conspiracy to commit...more
Individual Prosecutions Down But Corporate Resolutions Steady for DOJ’s Fraud Section in 2020, with More in the Pipeline -
The Department of Justice’s (“DOJ”) Fraud Section recently released a year-in-review report that...more
3/8/2021
/ Bribery ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Executive Orders ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Final Rules ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Opioid ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)
Supreme Court Declines to Review Issue of “Objective Falsity” Under False Claims Act -
On February 22, 2021, the United States Supreme Court denied petitions for certiorari in a case that could have addressed the issue of...more
3/1/2021
/ Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Fraud ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Fraud ,
Hospice ,
Investment Fraud ,
Objective Falsity ,
Qui Tam ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblowers
French Concrete Contractor to Pay $3.9 Million FCA Penalty -
On February 17, 2021, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that a French company, COLAS Djibouti SARL, agreed to pay $3.9 million to resolve allegations...more
2/22/2021
/ Bribery ,
CMBS ,
Contractors ,
Criminal Penalties ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Destruction of Evidence ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
France ,
Internal Controls ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Subcontractors ,
Wire Fraud
Headlines that Matter for Companies and Executives in Regulated Industries - Medical Supply Exec Agrees to Pay $20.3 Million to Settle FCA Claims - Kelly Wolfe of Indian Rocks Beach, Florida, has agreed to a $20.3 million...more
Former State Senator Indicted for Fraud, Money Laundering, and Tax Evasion -
On February 3, a grand jury indicted Sam McCann, former Illinois State Senator and 2018 gubernatorial candidate, for his role in a scheme to misuse...more
2/8/2021
/ Bitcoin ,
Campaign Funds ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Cryptocurrency ,
FinCEN ,
Fraud ,
Indictments ,
Money Laundering ,
Popular ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Tax Evasion ,
Wire Fraud