Spilled Bottle of Yellow Capsule Pills, representing drug Fraud and off-label marketing abuse

Another Big Pharma Payout – But Is It Enough?

Another Big Pharma Payout – But Is It Enough? Following big settlements against Eli Lilly and Pfizer for unlawful, off-label marketing of Zyprexa and Geodon respectively, the U.S. Department of Justice this week announced a settlement with AstraZeneca with regard to its atypical antipsychotic, Seroquel. As part of the settlement, the company has agreed to...

False Patent Claims: An Interesting Qui Tam Wrinkle

False Patent Claims: An Interesting Qui Tam Wrinkle A new frontier appears to be opening up for qui tam: suits for filing false patent marks. The relevant section of the law pertaining to patents (35 U.S.C 292) states: (a) Whoever, without the consent of the patentee, marks upon, or affixes to, or uses in advertising...

Protecting Corporate Whistleblowers

Protecting Corporate Whistleblowers A corporate whistleblower faces a very real risk of retaliation by her employer, commonly in the form of termination. Certain provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) provide protections for whistleblowers, and new whistleblower protections could potentially come through the proposed financial reform bill. 18 U.S.C. sec. 1514A of SOX protects corporate whistleblowers...

Whistle Blown on KBR Once Again

Whistle Blown on KBR Once Again The army just can’t seem to break it off with military contractor KBR. They’re like that couple everyone wants to break up, but they stay together–usually with one party taking advantage of the other. We’ve recently blogged about KBR’s ongoing legal troubles, but here is just one more volume...

Accounting pages and a coffee mug, representing internal and external audits

Tax Fraud…Behind Bars!

Tax Fraud…Behind Bars! Consider this: you committed a crime, weren’t wiley enough to avoid getting caught, and now you’re in jail. What’s the first thing on your mind? Well, send a bunch of fraudulent tax returns to the IRS in order to collect millions in refunds, of course! Investigators in Key West, Florida have found that inmates...

A Papers with Coins and Mobile Phone on the Side, representing whistleblower contracts

Cashing in Early on Tax Tips

Cashing in Early on Tax Tips In what could become a hot new market, whistleblowers are starting to cash in early on their rewards from the IRS–and investors are eating it up. Ever since the rules governing IRS rewards for tax fraud informants changed in 2006 to provide for bigger whistleblower awards, there has been...

Red White and Yellow Medication Pills, representing addiction treatment

Pharma Whistleblowers Under Stress

Pharma Whistleblowers Under Stress New findings from a New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) study entitled “Whistle-blowers’ experiences in fraud litigation against pharmaceutical companies” confirm what most whistleblowers already know: whistleblowers who report health care fraud experience substantial stress and receive little support. This appears to be in line with other recently released studies which confirm that,...

Silhouette of Soldiers Walking, representing military contractors

Military Contractor Fraud Triumvirate

Military Contractor Fraud Triumvirate Three prime examples of military contractor fraud deserve attention today. Two put service members at serious risk of bodily harm or death, and all of them bilked tax payers. In the first case, a subcontractor of Sikorsky agreed to pay $1.2 million to settle a FCA claim. Ceradyne, Inc., of Costa Mesa, CA,...

Dollar banknote on white table, representing whistleblower amendments, insider trading, and whistleblower awards.

A Fraud By Any Other Name Would Be As… Expensive

A Fraud By Any Other Name Would Be As… Expensive The False Claims Act provides for treble damages and a penalty between $5,500 and $11,000 for anyone who submits a false claim to the United States. With treble damages and penalties, committing fraud against the government can become a very expensive proposition. It’s hard to see how...

Stapler Fraud – Stealth Fighter Jet Fraud

Stapler Fraud – Stealth Fighter Jet Fraud Sure, office supplies aren’t nearly as sexy or controversial as Lockheed Martin’s F-22 Raptor Stealth fighter. Who hasn’t dreamed of being in the cockpit of a F-22 when our boss is trying to take away our stapler? Unfortunately office supply companies are not immune to the temptations of defrauding the government....

Category: News