The United States Supreme Court recently heard oral argument in a case arising under the whistleblower provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SOX), presenting the question of who must prove intent in a whistleblower...more
Post-production deductions are a hot topic in the Appalachian Basin. If you practice or operate in West Virginia, you know that the last 20 years have seen West Virginia forge its own path and deviate from the majority of...more
Medical necessity cases continue to be a focal point for False Claims Act (FCA) investigations and lawsuits. With this focus comes an age-old problem for health care providers and entities defending these actions: the...more
On June 28, 2019, the CFA Institute published the 2020 edition of the Global Investment Performance Standards (the “2020 Standards”). The Global Investment Performance Standards (“GIPS”) are voluntary ethical standards that...more
INTRODUCTION -
On May 1, 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the U.S. Attorney’s Office (“USAO”) for the Northern District of Texas announced a $4.375 million civil settlement with a natural gas marketer and...more
On August 30, 2017, in EQT Production Company v. Wender, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed a federal district court’s invalidation of a West Virginia county’s ordinance banning oil and natural...more
On Monday, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in Shaw v. United States, holding that a violation of the Bank Fraud Act, does not require proof that a defendant intends to target a bank, but only that defendant’s...more
Court Recognizes Theory but Reaffirms the “Rigorous” Materiality and Scienter Requirements, Making Clear that the FCA is No Remedy for “Minor or Inconsequential” Infractions
The Supreme Court issued a much-anticipated...more
Under Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) authorization, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) is “responsible for regulating (1) all securities firms that do business with the public[,]” (2) key stock...more
4/25/2016
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Bank Secrecy Act ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Culture ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Examination Priorities ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
FinCEN ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
On November 17, 2015, Deputy Treasury Secretary Sarah Bloom Raskin devoted her remarks at the Clearing House Annual Conference to financial sector cybersecurity. She concluded with a list of recommendations for handling...more
One of the factors that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) considers in deciding whether to bring charges against a corporation is the existence and effectiveness of the corporation’s pre-existing compliance program. On...more
11/5/2015
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Fraud ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Government Investigations ,
White Collar Crimes
On September 9, 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ” or the “Department”) issued a memorandum to its staff revising the principles guiding criminal and, indeed, civil enforcement in corporate criminal investigations...more
A phenomenon virtually foreign to the 20th Century, the use of pre-plea agreements by the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), typically in the form of a deferred prosecution agreement (“DPA”) (or a non-prosecution agreement...more
On October 10, 2014, the United States Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced a civil settlement agreement (the “Settlement”) with Extendicare Heath Services, Inc. and its subsidiary Progress Step Corporation (collectively,...more
10/23/2014
/ Corporate Integrity Agreement ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Healthcare ,
Medicaid ,
Medical Malpractice ,
Medical Reimbursement ,
Medicare ,
Non-Judicial Settlement Agreements ,
OIG ,
Skilled-Care Providers ,
Standard of Care ,
Worthless Services Claims
In light of these new realities corporations face, the first step a company should take is to establish internal guidelines addressing interaction with government agents. Companies should have a response policy in place and...more