Who Am I and Why Am I Writing This Blog on FCA/Qui Tam?

Dear Readers:

A colleague has suggested to me –my first blog comment—that I introduce myself, explain my expertise and experience in this area, and explain why I am writing this False Claims Act/Qui Tam blog. So, here goes:

First, as to my experience, I have practiced law here in Tampa and throughout Florida for over 20 years, and much of my practice has concentrated in the areas of white collar criminal defense and the defense of regulatory matters. A number of the white collar matters that I have defended involved allegations of health care fraud. Though many of these cases were criminal, over the years the criminal health care fraud cases gave way to more and more cases and investigations involving health care fraud related False Claims Act and qui tam cases. I see far more False Claim Act cases now than ever before.

I served as U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida from 2008 to 2010. The Middle District of Florida has traditionally been one of the nation’s most active districts in the prosecution of health care fraud cases and in the number of qui tams filed, and that was certainly true when I served. As U.S. Attorney, I oversaw numerous investigations and prosecutions of False Claims Act matters, qui tams, and health care fraud cases, including U.S. v. WellCare Health Plan, Inc., which arose from a qui tam filed in the Middle District of Florida.

Second, I write about the False Claim Act and qui tams because I have genuine interest in the False Claims Act statute, 31 U.S.C. §§ 3729–3733, and how it is applied in practice. It is an incredibly powerful weapon to combat fraud given its treble damages, fees, ruinous penalties, and in some industries, terrible collateral consequences if a company is found to have violated it. In my experience, the government often uses it aggressively, especially while the cases are under seal and it is able to apply maximum settlement leverage. Add to that weapon, the financial incentives enjoyed by relators and plaintiffs’ counsel to bring such suits and you have a formidable threat to corporations who receive funds from either the state or the federal government.