Recently, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California settled a Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) fraud investigation with Slidebelts, Inc. and its owner Brigham Taylor not by arresting Mr. Taylor, but...more
Whistleblower Developments is a periodic report covering significant cases, decisions, proposals, and legislation related to whistleblower statutes and how they may impact your business. Recent developments include:
SEC...more
1/29/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
CFTC ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
NDAA ,
Parent Corporation ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
On January 1, 2021, Congress passed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, which includes the Corporate Transparency Act (the CTA).1 The CTA requires all U.S. businesses to file “beneficial ownership”...more
1/12/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Beneficial Owner ,
Data Protection ,
Data Storage ,
FDIC ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinCEN ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Patriot Act ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shell Corporations ,
Tax Returns
On December 18, 2020, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would require banks and money service businesses (MSBs) “to submit reports, keep records, and verify the...more
Many health care providers treating senior patients rely on Medicare reimbursement and undertake significant measures to ensure proper billing and compliant practices. However, providers across the country may soon be subject...more
12/10/2020
/ American Medical Association ,
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospice ,
Medicare ,
Petition for Review ,
PHRMA ,
Physician Medicare Reimbursements ,
Qui Tam ,
SCOTUS
On October 26, 2020, the Small Business Administration (SBA) published notice in the federal register that it is seeking approval from the government’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to release two new forms (Form 3509...more
11/13/2020
/ Business Interruption ,
CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Liquidity ,
Loan Forgiveness ,
OMB ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Questionnaires ,
SBA
On October 19, 2020, The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced its first action against a bitcoin mixer: a $60 million civil penalty against Larry Dean Harmon. Harmon was the founder and operator of Helix...more
SEC Whistleblower Program Rules Change -
On September 23, 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced the adoption of a final rule in Release 34-89963 that changes several aspects of its whistleblower...more
10/22/2020
/ Appeals ,
CFTC ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Final Rules ,
New Rules ,
Proposed Rules ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
On August 18, 2020, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a statement on its approach to enforcing the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), to provide clarity on its approach to bringing compliance or enforcement...more
On July 30, 2020, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued an advisory alerting financial institutions to potential indicators of cybercrime and cyber-enabled crime observed during the COVID-19 pandemic.The...more
8/6/2020
/ Bank Secrecy Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Data Security ,
Extortion ,
FinCEN ,
Fraud ,
Malware ,
Personal Data ,
Phishing Scams ,
Popular ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
Whistleblower Developments is a periodic report covering significant cases, decisions, proposals, and legislation related to whistleblower statutes and how they may impact your business. Recent developments include:
SEC...more
8/5/2020
/ CARES Act ,
CFTC ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
...Think your company and its employees are beyond the reach of U.S. authorities? Maybe you don’t have U.S. operations there, or your company isn’t publicly traded on a U.S. stock exchange. Perhaps you don’t directly sell or...more
6/2/2020
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Business Operations ,
Conspiracies ,
Copyright ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Exports ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Imports ,
International Trade Commission (ITC) ,
Jurisdiction ,
Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) ,
Patents ,
Sherman Act ,
Trademarks
On May 15, 2020, the SBA issued its Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Loan Forgiveness Application.
1. Permits Use of Alternative Payroll Covered Period -
While the term of the “Covered Period” for loan forgiveness...more
On May 13, 2020, the Small Business Administration (SBA) issued new, important guidance (available here) regarding how the SBA will review a borrower’s required good-faith certification of necessity made in its loan...more
While recent federal funding has provided a lifeline for some companies, accepting government assistance under the CARES Act also carries significant legal, political and reputational risks for recipients. Loans are the tip...more
On April 15, 2020, the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) released updates to the Bank Secrecy Act/Anti-Money Laundering (BSA/AML) Examination Manual (Manual). The Manual, which was developed to...more
Businesses that applied for a Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan have a chance to change their minds if they return the money by May 14, 2020.
With the onslaught of COVID-19...more
Businesses that applied for a Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan have a chance to change their minds if they return the money by May 7, 2020.
With the onslaught of COVID-19...more
With the onslaught of COVID-19 business closures, the government invited businesses around the country to apply for CARES Act relief to help survive the closures. Many have chosen to apply for assistance through the Small...more
Following the Eleventh Circuit’s and Third Circuit’s recent rulings in United States v. AseraCare and United States v. Care Alternatives, respectively, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has now also addressed the question of...more
The COVID-19 virus crush is upon us at this moment. Like in 2008 with TARP, the government has invited businesses around the country to apply for CARES Act relief to help survive this pandemic...more
4/9/2020
/ Affiliated-Business Arrangements ,
Board of Directors ,
Business Interruption ,
CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Economic Injury Disaster Loans ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Loans ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Health Insurance ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Payroll Taxes ,
Relief Measures ,
SBA ,
SBA Lending Programs ,
Shareholders ,
Small Business ,
Stocks ,
Tax Relief
Despite the global pandemic, the federal judiciary continues to issue rulings. In the last week, two courts provided guidance about when self-disclosures to the government waive the attorney-client privilege, underscoring the...more
4/2/2020
/ Board of Directors ,
Compliance ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Data Points ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Directors ,
Ethics ,
Internal Investigations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In times of crisis, there are heroes, villains, victims, and everyone in between. Amidst the COVID-19 crisis, many valiant efforts are under immense time pressure—to care for the ill, to protect the vulnerable, to find and...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled last week that whistleblower relators need not show “objective falsity” to prove their claims, and that a dispute among physician experts about a clinical...more
3/12/2020
/ False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospice ,
Insurance Fraud ,
Life Sciences ,
Medicare ,
Objective Falsity ,
Physicians ,
Professional Liability ,
Qui Tam ,
Relators ,
Scienter ,
Triable Issue of Fact ,
Whistleblowers
Federal enforcers typically announce (formally as well as informally) work plans or focus areas for the upcoming year that can provide some guidance as to where providers might anticipate enforcement action and, where they...more