Whistleblower Insider Blog

Top Ten Federal False Claims Act Recoveries of 2018

Posted 01/28/19

The federal False Claims Act, under which whistleblowers can bring claims to report fraud and misconduct in government contracts and programs, is the foundation of the Department of Justice's fraud recovery and the U.S. whistleblower reward system. In 2018, the U.S. recovered over $2 billion from defendants who sought to cheat the system. The top FCA settlements for calendar year 2018, based on the amount of the...

Tagged in: FCA Federal, Government Procurement Fraud, Healthcare Fraud, Top 10, Whistleblower Rewards,

Top Ten State Fraud Recoveries of 2018

Posted 01/25/19

While 2018 saw many important federal settlements and whistleblower awards across a wide range of industries, state governments were equally busy rooting out fraud. In fact, in the last few years, recognizing the ever-growing need to hold businesses accountable for defrauding taxpayers, several states have passed their own false claims statutes modeled after the federal false claims act. These laws operate in a...

Tagged in: Financial and Investment Fraud, Healthcare Fraud, Top 10,

Catch of the Week – Walgreens Pays Record $273 Million To Settle Three FCA Suits

Posted 01/25/19

Three separate qui tam actions brought by whistleblowers against Walgreens Boots Alliance, Inc. (Walgreens) have resolved in what amounts to the largest settlement payouts for a retail pharmacy. In the first action, two former Walgreens pharmacists alleged that the company sought reimbursement for insulin pens it dispensed to Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries who did not need them. Walgreens did so in two ways....

Tagged in: Catch of the Week, Drug and DME Pricing, FCA Federal, Pharma Fraud, Whistleblower Rewards,

Top Ten Federal Financial Fraud Recoveries of 2018

Posted 01/25/19

While 2018 has been a banner year for FCPA, Tax, and SEC & CFTC recoveries, in the bottomless pit of financial frauds that hurt taxpayers, the government, consumers, investors, and the American economy, 2018 brought us additional stunning recoveries for violations related to residential-mortgage backed securities, international economic sanctions, consumer protection, anti-money-laundering, EB-5 investment fraud, and...

Tagged in: Accounting Fraud, Financial and Investment Fraud, Financial Institution Fraud, FIRREA, Foreign Exchange, Housing and Mortgage Fraud, Market Manipulation and Trading Violations, Misrepresentations, Securities Fraud, Top 10, Visa Fraud,

Top Ten Whistleblower Awards of 2018

Posted 01/25/19

2018 was another banner year for whistleblowers. As the DOJ recently reported in its annual summary of False Claims Act recoveries, $2.1 billion of the $2.8 billion in settlements and judgments reported last year arose from lawsuits filed under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act. During the same period, the government paid out $301 million in whistleblower awards to the individuals who exposed the fraud by...

Tagged in: CFTC Whistleblower Reward Program, FCA Federal, FCA State, SEC Whistleblower Reward Program, Top 10, Whistleblower Rewards,

Top Ten Environmental Fraud Settlements for 2018

Posted 01/24/19

Our environment, natural resources, energy resources, and wildlife are subject to numerous laws and government programs that can give rise to fraudulent activity. Here is our look-back at the top 10 environmental fraud recoveries for 2018. Our 2016 and 2017 lists are also available on the Whistleblower Insider blog.

International Automated Systems and RaPower-3 – In October 2018, a federal court in Utah...

Tagged in: Environmental Fraud, Top 10,

Top Ten SEC and CFTC Recoveries of 2018

Posted 01/18/19

The SEC and CFTC were busy in 2018. In addition to its robust FCPA enforcement, the SEC recovered hundreds of millions of dollars from companies accused of defrauding investors, breaching fiduciary duties, and violating SEC rules. The SEC also awarded its largest-ever whistleblower awards in 2018. Likewise, the CFTC spent the last year cracking down on market manipulators, rooting out commodities fraud, and halting...

Tagged in: CFTC Whistleblower Reward Program, Financial and Investment Fraud, Fraud in CFTC-Regulated Markets, SEC Whistleblower Reward Program, Securities Fraud, Top 10,

Top Ten Tax Recoveries of 2018

Posted 01/18/19

Tax fraud and tax evasion can take many forms, but there is one constant: when entities and individuals pay less tax than they owe, they are cheating the system. Bringing cases against companies and individuals that cheat the system is central to the Internal Revenue Service's mission. Tax fraud may also give rise to a claim under the IRS Whistleblower Reward Program, which pays eligible whistleblowers 15 to 30% of...

Tagged in: Tax Fraud, Top 10,

Top Ten Healthcare Recoveries of 2018

Posted 01/15/19

Consistent with the trend in prior years, the bulk of the Justice Department’s fraud and false claims recoveries in 2018 stemmed from healthcare fraud matters. And again, most of the funds recovered arose from cases originated by whistleblowers under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act. Here are the top ten healthcare recoveries of 2018 by the numbers:

1. Amerisource Bergen Corporation - In...

Tagged in: Anti-Kickback and Stark, FCA Federal, Healthcare Fraud, Hospital Fraud, Managed Care, Medical Billing Fraud, Medical Devices and DME, Medicare, Pharma Fraud, Risk Adjustment Fraud, Top 10,

Constantine Cannon Attorneys Eric Havian and Michael Ronickher Published in American Banker on Why Anti-Money Laundering Enforcement Needs More Whistleblowers

Posted 01/11/19

Several whistleblower-initiated enforcement actions relating to money laundering made headlines in recent weeks, including the German raids of Deutsche Bank and the multiple U.S. indictments of individuals involved with Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca. In light of the whistleblower contributions to these major enforcement actions, Constantine Cannon attorneys Eric Havian and Michael Ronickher published an article...

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