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Whistleblower Blog

Tax Fraud & Tax Evasion Among Medicaid Providers: New IRS Whistleblower Program Fills Gap in False Claims Act for Whistleblowers and Their Attorneys

Two important topics of this whistleblower lawyer blog are addressed in a recent Government Accounting Office (GAO) Report on tax cheating by Medicaid providers. The Report shows the wisdom of the new IRS Whistleblower Program, which fills a “gap” in the coverage of the major whistleblower statute, the False Claims Act.

GAO reports that thousands of Medicaid providers collect large amounts of federal dollars each year, while cheating the government by failing to pay taxes owed–usually payroll taxes and personal income taxes.
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False Claims Act “Qui Tam” Whistleblower Cases Recover More Than $1 Billion In Latest Year, Justice Department Announces

Once again displaying the effectiveness of the False Claims Act in combating government fraud, the Justice Department has announced that it recovered $2 billion in fraud cases in the latest fiscal year that ended September 30, 2007. Qui tam whistleblower cases under the False Claims Act accounted for at least $1.45 billion of those recoveries, with the whistleblowers (or “relators’) sharing in those recoveries.

In all but one year since 2000, False Claims Act cases have generated at least $1 billion in
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IRS Whistleblower Regulations & “Guidance” for Whistleblower Attorneys from the IRS

Anticipating the new IRS Whistleblower Program regulations that are due by the December 20, 2007 first anniversary of the new IRS Whistleblower Program, the IRS Office of Chief Counsel has just issued a Notice on “Coordination of Section 7623 Whistleblower Claims in the Tax Court.”

As discussed extensively on this whistleblower lawyer blog, one of the major features of the new IRS Whistleblower Program is that whistleblowers who meet the program’s criteria now have an enforceable right to share in money
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IRS Whistleblower Program: Hedge Funds and Private Equity Firms Under Increasing IRS Scrutiny for Tax Abuses

Continuing this whistleblower lawyer blog’s discussions of the IRS’s strong interest in hedge funds and private equity firms, there have been several recent public statements and reports about IRS efforts to identify and stop tax fraud and tax noncompliance in these segments of the financial services industry.

Today, suspected tax abuses by hedge funds and private equity managers were the subject of a Tax Notes report, which cites a November 1, 2007 statement by the IRS. That same day, Bloomberg reported that
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TRICARE Medical Fraud Report–Whistleblower Attorneys Take Note that Health Care Fraud Continues to Plague Government

Fraud affecting health care is a frequent topic of our whistleblower lawyer blog. A new report on TRICARE, the U.S. Military’s health care system, shows that medical fraud continues, as honest whistleblowers and their lawyers continue the fight against government fraud.

More than 200 “qui tam” whistleblower cases were mentioned in the annual report of the Program Integrity Office of TRICARE, and more than 200 whistleblower cases have been brought each year since 2002.

The Report outlines numerous types of (more…)

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False Claims Act Whistleblower Case to Be Decided By Supreme Court

This week, the United States Supreme Court agreed to hear a False Claims Act whistleblower case filed against the General Motors Corporation and its former division, Allison Engine Company. The alleged fraud concerns subcontracts for building parts for the U. S. Navy’s guided missile destroyers. Each of the 50 destroyers in question costs the taxpayers over $1 billion.

At issue in this case is an argument being made by the defendants that the whistleblower and the government cannot attack the alleged fraud scheme under
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Qui Tam Whistleblower in False Claims Act Case Receives $7.3 Million in False Claims Case

From time to time on this whistleblower blog we report cases of significance involving successful whistleblower claims filed under the federal False Claims Act. We read about such a case today in the news involving a $28 million settlement with National Air Cargo. It appears that the government determined that National Air Cargo had billed the government $4.4 million for various military shipments delivered by that company between the calendar years 1999 and 2005. The false claim was that National Air Cargo had billed
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IRS Tax Evasion & Stock Options Fraud Lead to Prison Sentence for Options Administrator

On this whistleblower lawyer blog, we have written previously about abuse of stock options–and how the IRS has declared that tax fraud and evasion from back-dating of stock options is a “Tier I” priority. Now, stock option fraud and income tax evasion will send a former stock options administrator to prison for almost four years.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has announced that Vencent Donlan was sentenced in a California federal court to 46 months in prison after pleading guilty to wire
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False Claims Acts and Unauthorized Laboratory Tests

Our whistleblower lawyer blog attorneys have written extensively about Georgia’s enactment of the new State False Medicaid Claims Act, a new whistleblower law that an attorney with our law firm helped enact. This qui tam whistleblower law has applicability to anyone who files a false or fraudulent claim for reimbursement with the State’s Medicaid program.

A classic example of this would be filing false claims for reimbursement for unnecessary and/or unauthorized laboratory tests. If a health care provider submits
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Revenue Recognition Fraud Charges Lead Nortel Networks Agrees to Pay $35 Million

Accounting fraud can create liability for violating the securities laws and IRS tax rules and regulations. This whistleblower lawyer blog regularly comments on cases of interest, as whistleblowers often play an important role in bringing the violations to light.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has announced civil fraud charges against Nortel Networks Corp. and Nortel Networks Ltd., alleging improper revenue recognition by Nortel between 2000 and 2003, designed to make the company look appear more profitable. Nortel agreed to pay
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State False Claims Acts Must Be Updated to Include New False Claims Act Changes, Grassley Warns

Senator Chuck Grassley is making sure that the States take advantage of important, recent improvements to the federal False Claims Act–with the help of financial incentives. In doing so, Grassley highlighted a defect in Oklahoma’s False Claims Act that should disqualify any state with a similar defect from these financial incentives.

As we have discussed at length, in the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, Congress recognized how effective the False Claims has been in recovering money for fraud against the government, by creating financial incentives for states that enact equally effective versions of the federal False Claims Act.

“Weaker” state versions of the False Claims Act do not qualify for the incentives, however. The Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services must approve a state’s False Claims Act before the incentives are available. So far, the IG has approved fourteen state FCAs, while disapproving six other state acts.

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IRS Whistleblower Office Announces Important Changes, New Procedures for IRS Whistleblower Program

IRS Whistleblower Office Director Steve Whitlock announced important, long-awaited developments in the new IRS Whistleblower Program yesterday at the Second Annual “IRS Whistleblower Boot Camp” in Washington.

First, Director Whitlock finally announced how the IRS will share information that will allow whistleblowers to understand the Whistleblower Office’s decisions about what awards are made to whistleblowers.

A year ago in my interview with the IRS Whistleblower Office Director, Mr. Whitlock discussed the need to solve the vexing question of how the IRS can share this information with whistleblowers and their attorneys, while also complying with legal requirements for confidentiality of taxpayer information under section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code.

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New IRS Whistleblower Program Developments Discussed This Week at “IRS Whistleblower Boot Camp”

On Tuesday, April 27, 2010, the Second Annual “IRS Whistleblower Boot Camp” will convene in Washington, D.C., sponsored by Taxpayers Against Fraud.

Representatives of the IRS Whistleblower Office will discuss the latest developments in the IRS Whistleblower Program, though which tax whistleblowers can receive up to 30% of recoveries by the IRS. Other IRS and DOJ representatives will take part as well, as they analyze what lawyers representing IRS whistleblowers should know in pursuing these claims.

Like last year’s program, this one is a sell-out. I am looking forwarding once again to moderating a panel discussion, this time on “Protecting IRS Whistleblowers from Criminal and Civil Liability.”

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SEC Charges Goldman Sachs With Fraud in Synthetic CDO Tied to Subprime Mortgages

As Congress finally works to establish a more meaningful SEC whistleblower program, the SEC has just announced that it has charged Goldman Sachs and one of its vice presidents with fraud, in connection with a “financial product tied to subprime mortgages, as the U.S. housing market was beginning to falter.”

Often maligned for failing to protect investors before the recent financial crisis, the SEC now charges that Goldman structured and marketed a “synthetic collateralized debt obligation” (CDO) like those that “contributed to the recent financial crisis by magnifying losses associated with the downturn in the United States housing market,” and then violated the federal securities laws in connection with that product.

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SEC Whistleblower Program–The SEC Inspector General’s Report

Post-Madoff, we have followed the legislative efforts to help establish an effective SEC whistleblower program. We know that the Senate Banking Committee in particular has worked hard in attempting to devise the best overall arrangement to encourage and reward whistleblowers who report fraud within the SEC’s jurisdiction.

Shortly before Congress authorized the first meaningful IRS Whistleblower Program in December 2006, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration issued its report on many of the changes needed for the IRS to use whistleblowers effectively.

Now, the SEC’s Inspector General David Kotz has issued his report, “Assessment of the SEC Bounty Program.” No one is surprised that it concludes that the SEC has not effectively encouraged, used, or rewarded whistleblowers over the past decades. Perhaps this report will pave the way for something meaningful–like the TIGTA report that preceded the now-promising IRS Whistleblower Program, which rewards whistleblowers with 15-30% of the government’s tax recoveries.

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Well Worth a Read: SEC Whistleblower Harry Markopolos’ “No One Would Listen: A True Financial Thriller”

After meeting with the Department of Justice in Washington recently to discuss another whistleblower case, I picked up Harry Markopolos’ recent book, “No One Would Listen: A True Financial Thriller.” It is a fun and engrossing read, with humor that I did not expect to find in this subject.

We have written previously to applaud Harry Markopolos’ work in figuring out Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, and then in trying to get the SEC’s attention for years. In an era when fraud is being exposed in so many industries through the courage of whistleblowers, his book shows just how paper-thin our government’s resources can be in recognizing and stopping the next huge fraud scheme.

Neither I nor my law firm has any financial interest in recommending this book, and no one has asked me to mention it, but I do believe that any thinking person will enjoy it.

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New Health Care Law Arrives With Announcement of $12 Million Recovery in Qui Tam Whistleblower Case Under False Claims Act

The major new “health care” law that the President signed this week, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148), includes increased efforts to combat health care fraud and abuse, especially fraud in the Medicare and Medicaid programs.

It was significant that, on the very same day that this law took effect, an outstanding group of government prosecutors and investigators brought to an efficient conclusion a $12 million recovery of funds in a qui tam whistleblower case alleging health care fraud in violation of the False Claims Act. The case was brought by our firm, Finch McCranie, LLP, the Simpson Firm, LLC, and James G. Gustino, P.A..

The next day, after a meeting in Washington with the Department of Justice on another False Claims Act case, I sat in on the Senate debate of amendments to the new health care law. Whatever differing views may exist about many of the new law’s provisions, all taxpayers agree that stopping fraud in health care is an essential step to preserving scarce health care dollars.

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Greatest Impact of 2009 False Claims Act Amendments–“Civil Investigative Demands”

Among the many 2009 changes to strengthen the False Claims Act is one whose impact is about to be experienced: greater use of “civil investigative demands” to gather evidence.

Civil investigative demands allow to government to require any person believed to have documents or information relevant to a False Claims Act investigation to do the following:

(A) to produce such documentary material for inspection and copying,

(B) to answer in writing written interrogatories with respect to such documentary material or information,

(C) to give
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Bank CEO’s Alleged TARP Fraud Results in First Reported Criminal Charges For Misuse of TARP Funds

We have written previously about how the “Troubled Asset Relief Program” (TARP) that began with the financial meltdown in 2008 would undoubtedly beget fraud that may be actionable under the False Claims Act. The qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act, the country’s major whistleblower law, allow whistleblowers (“relators”) who report fraud or false claims to share in the government’s recovery of damages.

Yesterday, the first TARP fraud criminal charges appeared. Federal prosecutors in New York’s Southern District announced the arrest of Charles J. Antonucci, Sr., former President and Chief Executive Officer of The Park Avenue Bank.

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Iraq Reconstruction Fraud Continues to Fuel Investigations by Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction

As if the nation’s expenditures to rebuild Iraq were not enough, fraud that steals taxpayer dollars continues to infect the Iraq reconstruction program. This fraud often results in qui tam whistleblower cases under the False Claims Act, which allows those reporting the fraud to receive a a share of the government’s recovery of money.

Today’s New York Times piece by James Glanz reports on the more than 50 new fraud investigations in the past six months alone in the Iraq reconstruction effort.

The Office of the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction is responsible for these investigations. “Chaos, weak oversight and wide use of cash payments in the reconstruction program in Iraq allowed many more Americans who took bribes or stole money to get off scot-free,” in Mr. Glanz’s words.

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