Whistleblower Blog Archives - Page 18 of 36

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IRS Whistleblower Program for Tax Whistleblowers: IRS Announces Sharing of Information with Whistleblowers and Their Attorneys Under Written Contracts

March 27, 2008
Michael Sullivan

The IRS this week announced another interesting development in its new IRS Whistleblower Program, which this whistleblower lawyer blog has followed closely. This announcement addressed new regulations permitting the IRS to share tax return information with whistleblowers and their lawyers under written contracts with the IRS, and also to advise those whistleblowers and their attorneys about the status of their whistleblower claims.

On March 25, 2008, the IRS announced new, temporary regulations permitting “disclosure of [tax] return information . . . to
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Whistleblower False Claims Act Cases Lead New Jersey Health Care Consultant to Settle Allegations of Medicare Fraud

March 16, 2008
Michael Sullivan

The Justice Department has announced that Besler & Company, Inc., a New Jersey health care consulting firm, and its principal Philip Besler, have agreed to settle allegations of fraud against the federal Medicare program, which were initiated by two qui tam whistleblower cases. The settlement is for $2.875 million, plus interest, paid to the federal government.

The settlement concludes that the Besler firm counseled hospital clients to improperly increase charges to Medicare patients, so that they would obtain enhanced reimbursement from Medicare.

Medicare pays supplemental
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IRS Tax Whistleblower Progress Continues with IRS Chief Counsel’s Advice on Informant Contacts

March 10, 2008
Michael Sullivan

The new IRS Whistleblower Rewards Program continues to take shape, as the IRS’s Chief Counsel has advised IRS employees on the contacts they may have with certain whistleblowers or “informants.”

The new IRS Whistleblower Program for tax whistleblowers is an exciting development. It has brought together a team of extremely qualified professionals at the IRS, and has provided them the legal means to create an effective whistleblower program.

This Notice (CC-2008-011) addresses what contacts IRS employees may have with (1) informants with information about their current employer; and (2) informants who act as a taxpayer’s representative in an IRS examination or other IRS matter.

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“False Claims Act Correction Act” to Restore Qui Tam Whistleblower Law to Its Original Intent Goes Before Senate Judiciary Committee

February 26, 2008
Michael Sullivan

Tomorrow, the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on a much-needed bill that will restore to its intended effectiveness the government’s primary law for combating fraud.

Our whistleblower lawyer blog has written previously about the “False Claims Act Correction Act.” The Act is one of the most significant developments in whistleblower law since the 1986 amendments that created the modern False Claims Act.

This is a bipartisan bill designed to restore the government’s “primary” tool for fighting fraud against taxpayers,
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State False Claims Act Is Considered in Louisiana

February 20, 2008
Michael Sullivan

The trend of new state False Claims Acts with qui tam whistleblower provisions continues, as Louisiana considers whether to adopt its own version of the federal False Claims Act.

The growing number of state False Claims Acts has been a frequent topic of this whistleblower lawyer blog. In 2007, New York, Georgia, and Oklahoma joined the 16 other states that have enacted versions of the federal False Claims Act, the government’s primary weapon for fighting fraud against
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Qui Tam Whistleblowers Awarded $140 Million Under False Claims Act in Medicare and Medicaid Fraud Cases in FY 2006

February 19, 2008
Michael Sullivan

Whistleblowers and their attorneys filing suit under the False Claims Act helped federal authorities recover $2.2 billion in Medicare and Medicaid fraud cases in fiscal year 2006, according to a government report just released. The whistleblowers or “relators” received $140 million of the proceeds for their efforts, under the qui tam provisions of the False Claims Act.

As this whistleblower lawyer blog has written about extensively, the federal False Claims Act is the government’s “primary” weapon for combating fraud. As health
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Federal Subsidies and the False Claims Act

February 9, 2008
Michael Sullivan

If an organization or individual is receiving a federal subsidy of any kind and makes false statements to the Federal Government with respect to such subsidies, such false statements could subject the receiver of the subsidy to liability under the Federal False Claims Act. In short, if a recipient of a federal subsidy makes false statements concerning eligibility for the subsidy and/or the amount of the subsidy sought or obtained, the recipient could be sued for fraud by a whistleblower with knowledge of the false
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New Whistleblower Law Provides Protection for Defense Contractor Employees

January 30, 2008
Michael Sullivan

Two days ago on 1/28/08 President Bush signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act for the fiscal year 2008. This legislation includes a provision protecting defense contractor employees who blow the whistle on contracting fraud. 10 U.S.C. § 2409 has specifically been amended via Section 846 to protect employees for disclosing “information that the employee reasonably believes is evidence of gross mismanagement of a Department of Defense contract or grant, a gross waste of Department of Defense funds, a substantial and specific danger to
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Tax Fraud Prosecution Over Abuse of Offshore Transactions Leads to Convictions of CPAs and Attorney by IRS and Justice Department (from Whistleblower Lawyer Blog)

January 29, 2008
Michael Sullivan

Our whistleblower lawyer blog has followed closely investigations of hedge funds and other offshore investors for tax fraud and other IRS violations. After investigating a tax fraud conspiracy involving offshore companies and offshore bank accounts, the Justice Department and the IRS have announced that an attorney and two certified public accountants have pleaded guilty to tax fraud and aiding the preparation of a false tax return.

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Whistleblower Qui Tam Case Result: “Big Dig” Settlement of $458 Million Announced

January 25, 2008
Michael Sullivan

The “Big Dig” collapse has led to a $458 million settlement by contractors responsible for the Boston Central Artery/Tunnel highway project. Whistleblowers using the federal and state False Claims Acts helped bring about that result.

Of the $458 million settlement, $23 million is being paid to the United States under the federal False Claims Act, and $40 million will go to Massachusetts under its state False Claims Act, as a result of qui tam whistleblower litigation. (As we have written about extensively on
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False Claims Act Amendments Approved by Senate Judiciary Committee As Part of FERA (Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act) Today

March 5, 2009
Michael Sullivan

Today, we were excited to hear that the Senate Judiciary Committee has sent long-needed amendments to the False Claims Act to the full Senate, as part of the “bailout” and “stimulus” inspired “Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act” (FERA).

Where there are taxpayer funds being spent, there will be attempts to engage in fraud to cheat the public. As hundreds of billions of dollars are poured into federal and state programs through the “economic stimulus” package, the continuation of the Troubled Assets Relief Program
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Whistleblower Attorneys to Discuss Qui Tam Cases Under False Claims Act, IRS Whistleblower Program, and Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower Cases at Annual “Whistleblower Law Symposium”

March 1, 2009
Michael Sullivan

I am very excited about co-chairing the Annual “Whistleblower Law Symposium” once again this week.

From Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, New Orleans, San Antonio, and Washington, D.C., many of the country’s leading attorneys in whistleblower cases under the “qui tam” statute, the False Claims Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley statute, and the IRS Whistleblower Program will gather in Atlanta on March 4 to discuss some of the more challenging aspects of representing whistleblowers (or defending against whistleblower claims) under these laws.

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UBS Agrees to Pay $780 Million & Identify Customers in IRS Tax Fraud Case

February 18, 2009
Michael Sullivan

Off-shore tax evasion and international tax avoidance schemes are priorities of the IRS and the IRS Whistleblower program, which rewards tax whistleblowers. Our whistleblower lawyer blog has followed the ongoing investigation of UBS for its activities, which took a major turn today.

Today, the government announced that UBS AG, Switzerland’s largest bank, has admitted to helping U.S. taxpayers hide accounts from the IRS. UBS has agreed to identify its customers and to pay $780 million, as part of a “deferred prosecution agreement” on charges of conspiring to defraud the United States by impeding the IRS.

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Pharma Manufacturer in Medicaid Fraud Case Ordered to Pay Millions by Wisconsin Jury

February 18, 2009
Michael Sullivan

Hidden schemes to defraud Medicare and state Medicaid programs of scarce taxpayer dollars are at the heart of many whistleblower cases under the federal and state False Claims Acts.

This morning, Wisconsin Attorney General J. B. Van Hollen announced that a Dane County, Wisconsin jury has just declared that a pharmaceutical manufacturer defrauded the Wisconsin Medicaid program by reporting grossly inflated and fraudulent prices.

Pfizer was on the receiving end of the health care fraud verdict, which may result in more than $153
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Wall Street Financial Industry “Bailout” Whistleblowers Sought by–Michael Moore?

February 11, 2009
Michael Sullivan

Taking a brief break from “substantive” writing on this whistleblower lawyer blog, I could not help but briefly note this story today:

Filmmaker Michael Moore is seeking whistleblowers in the financial industry for his next film. He concludes “if you work for a bank, a brokerage firm or an insurance company — or if you have seen things or heard things that you believe the American people have a right to know — please contact me” via the email address posted on his blog.

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TARP Apparently Overpaid for Bank Assets, According to Congressional Oversight Panel

February 6, 2009
Michael Sullivan

Those potential whistleblowers watching for TARP waste, fraud and abuse should note today’s report of the Congressional Oversight Panel. According to the report, the Treasury Department has received “far less value in stocks and warrants than the money it injected into financial institutions.”

The report, “Valuing Treasury Acquisitions,” concludes that Treasury paid “substantially more for the assets it purchased under the TARP than the market value of those assets” at the time this deal was announced. The Panel revealed that, in the ten
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Hedge Funds Face Regulation & Oversight by SEC–Will There Be Another Compliance Tool in Addition to IRS Whistleblower Program?

February 1, 2009
Michael Sullivan

When improprieties occur with hedge funds, the hedge funds’ lack of transparency and dearth of disclosure obligations make violations of the law difficult to uncover. Sometimes, persons in the hedge fund industry report those abuses through the IRS Whistleblower Program, as some of our IRS Whistleblower clients have done.

Nonetheless, the hedge fund industry remains cloaked in secrecy, frustrating experts who now seek to gauge the impact of hedge funds on the current financial crisis.

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Whistleblower Protections Added to Economic Stimulus Bill Passed by House

January 28, 2009
Michael Sullivan

When the Wall Street “bailout” grew with Congress’ creation of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP), Sen. Chuck Grassley emphasized the importance of “whistleblowers” and the False Claims Act to protecting these taxpayer funds from fraud and abuse.

Tonight, the House added to the bailout by passing the economic stimulus package, HR 1, and approved an amendment adding whistleblower protection for federal employees.

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With TARP and Wall Street Bailout, Securities Fraud and Accounting Fraud Are Targeted by New Supplemental Anti-Fraud Enforcement (“SAFE”) Markets Act

January 27, 2009
Michael Sullivan

Financial fraud is a frequent topic of whistleblower cases and of this whistleblower lawyer blog, especially with TARP and the Wall Street “bailout” dominating headlines.

Senators Chuck Shumer and Richard Shelby have proposed a bipartisan bill to bolster federal resources to combat securities fraud and accounting fraud, the Supplemental Anti-Fraud Enforcement (“SAFE”) Markets Act.

Here are excerpts from the Senators’ announcement:

“Our white collar crime divisions are under-staffed, under-funded, and overwhelmed,” Schumer said. “When a wave of violent crime sweeps through a city,
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Will Wall Street Bailout Help Firms That Are “Tax Dodgers” and Hide Income in Offshore Tax “Havens”? And Will the IRS Whistleblower Program Provide a Remedy?

January 18, 2009
Michael Sullivan

As our government hemorrhages its taxpayers’ funds to “bail out” firms that made poor decisions–such as American International Group (AIG), Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and American Express–a just-issued report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) raises a disturbing question: have many of the same firms already been avoiding paying their “fair share” of U.S. taxes by using offshore tax “havens”?

If so, whistleblowers will be performing a civic duty by reporting any tax evasion and noncompliance through the IRS Whistleblower Program.

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