Whistleblower Insider Blog

DOJ Catch Of The Week -- MetLife Home Loans

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team This week's Department of Justice "catch of the week" goes to MetLife Home Loans LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of MetLife Inc.  On Wednesday, the Texas-based mortgage finance company agreed to pay $123.5 million to resolve allegations it violated the False Claims Act.  Specifically, the government charged that MetLife Bank knowingly originated and underwrote mortgage loans...

DOJ Gets Failing Marks For Treatment Of FBI Whistleblowers

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team The Government Accountability Office (GAO) this week released its much anticipated report on the Department of Justice's treatment of FBI whistleblowers.  The GAO's findings do not speak well of the government's treatment of this particular class of intelligence whistleblower.  In short, the GAO found the DOJ has not properly handled complaints of FBI whistleblower...

New York AG Proposes Financial Frauds Whistleblower Act

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced today proposed legislation to protect and reward whistleblowers who report on fraud or misconduct in the banking, insurance, and financial services industries.  Titled the Financial Frauds Whistleblower Act, the law would be modeled after the Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Program and provide whistleblower rewards of 10-30...

Seventh Circuit Gives Broad Read To What Constitutes A "Referral" Under Anti-Kickback Statute

Under the Anti-Kickback Statute, physicians may not solicit or receive kickbacks for referring Medicare patients to a particular healthcare provider. The question before the Seventh Circuit in United States v. Patel was the scope of what constitutes a referral under the statute. According to the Court, the scope is quite broad, even extending to situations where the physician plays no role in selecting the healthcare...

Interview with 2014 Whistleblower of the Year Mary Willingham

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team Mary Willingham, Whistleblower Insider’s 2014 Whistleblower of the Year, is the former educator at the University of North Carolina who went public with her concerns about the university’s major failings in educating its big money athletes and has been on a continued quest to clean up college sports.  We had the opportunity to speak to Ms. Willingham about her win and...

Whistleblower News From The Inside - February 25, 2015

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team Apple ordered to pay $533M for patent infringement -- A federal jury in Texas found Apple’s iTunes software infringed three patents owned by patent licensing firm Smartflash LLC.  Reuters US investigates Capital One for possible money laundering -- The company disclosed in a regulatory filing that it has received subpoena and testimony requests from DOJ and the Treasury...

In Their Own Words - Diller

-- “Now we have another reason for the public to learn about the glories of amphetamine -- it’s very worrisome.”

Dr. Lawrence H. Diller, a behavioral pediatrician in Walnut Creek, California, on drug-maker Shire’s newly-introduced campaign to promote Vyvanse to treat binge-eating disorder which some are saying is going too far to market a type of amphetamine classified by the government as having a high...

In Their Own Words - Radack

-- "THIS REPORT EPITOMIZES THE UTTER LACK OF PROTECTION FOR NATIONAL SECURITY WHISTLEBLOWERS. THIS IS A PATHETIC, ANEMIC EXCUSE FOR AN INVESTIGATION." Jesselyn Radack, Government Accountability Project attorney and counsel for NSA whistleblower Thomas Drake, on the recently released Pentagon report acknowledging the Inspector General’s investigation into Drake’s allegations of retaliation only looked into 2 of...

Whistleblower News From The Inside - February 24, 2015

By the C|C Whistleblower Lawyer Team GAO finds DOJ fails FBI whistleblowers -- “This report confirms that reforms are needed to empower whistleblowers at FBI and ensure they are effectively and efficiently protected against retaliation in the workplace.”  The Hill Goodyear to pay more than $16M to settle FCPA charges -- According to the SEC, Goodyear failed to prevent its sub-Saharan Africa subsidiaries from...

In Their Own Words - Grassley

-- “THIS REPORT CONFIRMS THAT REFORMS ARE NEEDED TO EMPOWER WHISTLEBLOWERS AT FBI AND ENSURE THEY ARE EFFECTIVELY AND EFFICIENTLY PROTECTED AGAINST RETALIATION IN THE WORKPLACE.” Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on the Government Accountability Office report released today revealing challenges facing whistleblowers at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, including limited protections for whistleblower disclosures...