Whistleblower News From The Inside -- February 8, 2017

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team

Palm Beach County physician and dermatology clinic owner will pay over $18M to resolve FCA lawsuit – Gary L. Marder, D.O., owner and operator of the Allergy, Dermatology & Skin Cancer Centers, and the United States reached an agreement to resolve a slew of allegations brought by a whistleblower, including that Dr. Marder submitted claims for “medically unnecessary biopsies and radiation therapy services, radiation therapy services performed in contravention of standard practice regarding the amount of time between radiation treatments, and radiation therapy services performed without direct supervision and by unlicensed and/or unqualified physician assistants.”  DOJ    

New Jersey translations company settles FCA allegations for $1.5M – Para-Plus Translations, Inc. agreed to the settlement, which resolves allegations, from a whistleblower lawsuit, that it overbilled various federal and state agencies by purposely overstating travel time and mileage incurred by its interpreters.  DOJ

SEC bars private equity adviser from industry for withdrawing improper fees from funds – Scott M. Landress is barred from the securities industry and must pay a $1.25M penalty to resolve charges that he withdrew improper fees from two private equity funds he managed. Scott W. Friestad, Associate Director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, said “[p]rivate equity fund advisers have a duty to act in the best interest of their clients, but Landress and [his investment advisory firm] SLRA helped themselves to millions of dollars’ worth of fees to which they had no legitimate claim.” SEC