Have a Claim?

Click here for a confidential contact or call:

1-212-350-2774
Page 1 of 2

Former Regional Director of the SEC’s Chicago Office Joins Constantine Cannon’s Whistleblower Practice

Posted  12/8/21
Joel R. Levin brings deep experience to the largest and most successful international whistleblower practice in the world
NEW YORK, NY (12/3/2021)—Constantine Cannon LLP is pleased to announce that Joel R. Levin, former Regional Director of the Chicago office of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), will be joining the firm’s whistleblower practice as Of Counsel. Mr. Levin brings a breadth of...

Constantine Cannon Announces First-Ever NHTSA Whistleblower Award In Hyundai-Kia Engine Defect Case

Posted  11/9/21
Award to former Hyundai safety engineer in South Korea highlights the international reach of U.S. whistleblower laws, which provide awards to those who report fraud or corruption
SAN FRANCISCO, CA (November 9, 2021) –Constantine Cannon is pleased to announce that its client, former Hyundai safety engineer Kim Gwang-ho, has received $24.3 million in the first-ever whistleblower award from the U.S. National Highway...

U.S. Intervenes in Whistleblower Lawsuit brought by Constantine Cannon Client against Independent Health and Related Entities for Defrauding Medicare Advantage Program

Posted  09/15/21
  • Medicare Advantage Organization and its subsidiaries allegedly ignored federal guidelines for proper coding of medical conditions for Medicare Part “C” reimbursement
  • In a rare move, a medical coding review company owned by IH is also a party named in the complaint, along with a key executive who allegedly helped the insurer game the system
The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed its...

Constantine Cannon Client Secures Record $90 Million False Claims Act Whistleblower Settlement with Sutter Health

Posted  08/30/21
Sutter Health settles closely watched whistleblower lawsuit alleging it violated the False Claims Act by submitting inaccurate and unsupported medical information on tens of thousands of patients enrolled in Medicare Advantage.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA (August 30, 2021) – Constantine Cannon, together with co-counsel Keller Grover and Kleiman Rajaram, announce the landmark $90 million False Claims Act settlement with...

Constantine Cannon Whistleblower Client Wins First-Ever False Claims Act Settlement for Cybersecurity Fraud

Posted  07/31/19
Cisco Systems, a Fortune 100 Company, was alleged to be selling security surveillance technology to federal, state, and local agencies while fully conscious of its serious vulnerabilities.
WASHINGTON, D.C., July 31, 2019 – In the first cybersecurity whistleblower case ever successfully litigated under the False Claims Act, Cisco Systems, Inc. has agreed to an $8.6 million settlement to resolve allegations it...

May 30, 2017

Posted  05/31/17
By Mary Inman
Constantine Cannon serves as lead counsel representing whistleblower Dr. Darren Sewell in largest successful whistleblower settlement for claims of risk adjustment fraud at $16.7 million.  Total settlement against Freedom Health and Optimum Healthcare, two Florida Medicare Advantage plans, and former Chief Operating Officer Sidd Pagidipati exceeds $32 million.   Read the Constantine Cannon press release, the Dept....

$2.6 Million Whistleblower Settlement With Bay Sleep Clinic

The clinic will settle whistleblower allegations of using unlicensed technicians and unapproved locations and of doctor kickback referrals. Constantine Cannon LLP is pleased to announce a $2.6 million settlement on behalf of its client for whistleblower allegations against Bay Sleep Clinic. The settlement was announced by the United States government on December 28, 2016, against Bay Sleep Clinic, which currently operates 20 locations throughout northern California; its related Qualium Corporation and Amerimed Corporation businesses; and owners and operators Anooshiravan Mostowfipour and Tara Nader. The “qui tam,” or whistleblower, lawsuit alleged that the defendants fraudulently billed Medicare for sleep studies conducted by unlicensed individuals in unapproved locations; improperly dispensed durable medical equipment from unapproved locations using unlicensed technicians; and paid doctors for referrals in violation of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute. The defendants neither admitted nor denied liability. The whistleblower, Elma F. Dresser, is a former Bay Sleep Clinic employee who worked as a sleep technician and marketer for eight years. Through her various roles at the company, Ms. Dresser became familiar with the defendants’ alleged scheme to bilk money from Medicare. She filed her suit in 2012, leading the government to investigate the claims and join the case. Ms. Dresser was represented by Eric R. Havian, partner and attorney, Jessica T. Moore, partner and attorney, Anne Hayes Hartman, partner and attorney, Hallie Noecker, attorney, and Sarah Poppy Alexander, attorney of Constantine Cannon’s whistleblower practice in San Francisco, along with co-counsel from the Law Office of William C. Dresser. “It’s rewarding to see the alleged fraudsters held responsible. Because of the close cooperation and work between the whistleblower and the government, we were able to recover significant funds for the government,” said Anne Hayes Hartman, co-lead counsel on the case. “It is gratifying to represent people like Elma Dresser, who bravely stepped forward with knowledge of her employer’s wrongdoing. Many do not appreciate the risks whistleblowers face to hold alleged wrongdoers accountable.” “Sleep studies are a quickly expanding medical field,” said Jessica T. Moore, who served as co- lead counsel on the case. “Ensuring the safety of these procedures should be a top priority of the government for all patients, Medicare and otherwise.” The federal False Claims Act allows whistleblowers to sue companies that are defrauding the government and receive a reward if the government recovers any funds as a result. The government may choose to intervene in the lawsuit, as it has done in this case. The False Claims Act is one of the government’s most effective weapons in combatting fraud, waste, and abuse by those who contract with the government. Healthcare fraud alone is estimated to cost the U.S. billions of dollars. Such fraud can be difficult to discern without access to inside information; well-placed whistleblowers are necessary to provide the information the government might otherwise lack to help stop these practices.

Forty-Two California Government Entities Join Whistleblower Suit Against Nation’s Largest Wireless Carriers

San Francisco, CA (December 8, 2015) – More than 40 California government entities have joined a lawsuit filed by a whistleblower against Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile. The case, brought in Sacramento County Superior Court under the California False Claims Act, alleges that the wireless companies overcharged government customers by more than $100 million. The government intervenors and the whistleblower are represented by Constantine Cannon LLP. The action was unsealed by the Court on December 7, 2015. The wireless companies are alleged to have ignored two cost-saving requirements included in the master contracts under which California state and local government customers purchased wireless services.  Specifically, the master contracts required the carriers to determine and report to the government customers which rate plan selections would result in the lowest cost – referred to as “rate plan optimization” – and to provide wireless services at “the lowest available cost.” Rate plan optimization is a computerized service that analyzes individuals’ usage patterns quarterly and identifies the least expensive service or rate plan for each phone or user. Selecting the rate plan that best matches usage patterns reduces costs by 20-30% over the term of a contract.  Although the master contracts with the government required it, the wireless carriers did not prepare or provide rate plan optimization reports, the lawsuit alleges.  Further, as the carriers did not bill government customers utilizing the most cost effective rate plans, the defendants are also alleged to have failed to provide service at the “lowest available cost.”  The carriers’ failure to live up to their contractual promises, the lawsuit alleges, resulted in overcharges to the government of more than $100 million. “The carriers promised optimization in order to win these government contracts, which are worth billions of dollars,” said Anne Hayes Hartman, a partner at Constantine Cannon with extensive experience representing whistleblowers and government entities in False Claims Act cases. “But while they were happy to take the government’s money, the carriers simply ignored their commitments to bill using the lowest cost rate plans.  The carriers profited and taxpayers paid the price.” “We look forward to recovering the lost savings and securing ongoing contract compliance for the many government entities that were damaged,” said Wayne T. Lamprey, a partner at Constantine Cannon and former Assistant U.S. Attorney. The action was brought by OnTheGo Wireless, which has been one of the leading rate plan analysis firms in the country and a pioneer in the field of rate plan optimization. The case is State of California et al. ex rel. OntheGo Wireless, LLC v. Cellco Partnership et al., Case No. 34-2012-00127517 (Super. Ct. Cal., Sacramento County). Intervening Entities Regents of the University of California Los Angeles County Madera County Marin County Orange County Riverside County Sacramento County San Bernardino County Santa Cruz County Sonoma County Stanislaus County Yuba County City of Capitola City of Chino City of Corona City of Fortuna City of Long Beach City of Oxnard City of Rancho Cucamonga City of Ripon City of Riverside City of Sacramento City of San Bernardino City of San Mateo City of Santa Cruz City of Santa Rosa City of Vernon City of Victorville Grossmont Union High School District Irvine Unified School District Kaweah Delta Health Care District Kings Canyon Unified School District Olivenhain Municipal Water District Sonoma County Water Agency Rosemead School District Saddleback Valley Unified San Diego Unified School District Santa Cruz Public Libraries Torrance Unified School District Victor Valley Transit Authority Whittier Union High School District Woodbridge Fire District   About Constantine Cannon LLP Constantine Cannon, with offices in New York, Washington D.C., San Francisco and London, has deep expertise in practice areas that include antitrust and complex commercial litigation, whistleblower representation, government relations, securities and e-discovery. The firm’s antitrust practice is among the largest and most well recognized in the nation. Constantine Cannon’s experience spans across multiple industries including healthcare, banking, electronic payments, insurance, high tech, telecommunications, the Internet and government contracting. Constantine Cannon’s whistleblower lawyer practice represents whistleblowers under the False Claims Act, the Dodd-Frank Act, and the various federal and state laws that encourage industry insiders to report evidence of fraud or misconduct. The firm was one of the first in the country to bring a claim under the whistleblower provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act.
1 2