Kang Haggerty NewsKang Haggerty LLC’s Whistleblower Advocates practice group will be well-represented at this week’s Anti-Fraud Coalition (TAF) 24th Annual Conference taking place at the Georgetown Marriott in Washington, DC from September 24-27, 2024. Continue reading ›
Articles Posted in Whistleblower Actions
Legal Intelligencer: Going It Alone: Can Whistleblowers Seek Corporate Veil-Piercing in Declined Cases?
As an initial matter, the government’s refusal to intervene in an FCA action does not strip a relator of his Article III standing in bringing an FCA action when the relator does not suffer an injury in fact. Qui tam actions present a “well-established exception” to the traditional Article III analysis.
In the August 30, 2024 Edition of The Legal Intelligencer, Edward Kang writes, “Going It Alone: Can Whistleblowers Seek Corporate Veil-Piercing in Declined Cases?” Continue reading ›
TAF Coalition News: Kandis Kovalsky on Understanding Touhy Requests
The TAF Coalition, a public interest, non-profit organization dedicated to defending and empowering whistleblowers who expose fraud on the government and the financial markets, recently published a primer on understanding Touhy requests by Kang Haggerty member Kandis Kovalsky. Continue reading ›
Calabrese Moderates Webinar for TAF Coalition
On July 17, Sofia Calabrese moderated The Anti-Fraud Coalition (TAF) YLD War Stories webinar. The webinar centered around the Fesenmaier case and featured Chandra Napora and Jonathan Lischak of Morgan Verkamp, who were instrumental in securing the $487 Million judgment against Defendants Cameron-Ehlen Group, Inc. dba Precision Lens and its owner Paul Ehlen for violations of the False Claims Act and Anti-Kickback Statute. The judgment is the largest judgment entered under the False Claims Act.
TAF is a public interest, non-profit organization dedicated to defending and empowering whistleblowers who expose fraud on the government and the financial markets.
Kovalsky to Present at ABA 2023 Public Procurement Symposium
On Friday, November 3, 2023, Kandis L. Kovalsky joins fellow panelists Taylor Brown, Counsel and Practice Lead at IBM, and Geeta Taylor, Senior Counsel in the Office of Counsel to the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in New Orleans to present, “When Grants Go Bad and False Claims Arise.” Continue reading ›
The Philadelphia Inquirer: Vanguard Whistleblower Lawsuit Goes to Mediation
The front page of The Philadelphia Inquirer’s business section on June 10, 2023, features an article from reporter Joseph N. DiStefano, “Vanguard and former tax lawyer are in mediation over wrongful termination lawsuit,” detailing the status of former Vanguard attorney David Danon’s whistleblower lawsuit against Vanguard. Continue reading ›
Supreme Court Rules Unanimously in Favor of Relators in Monumental Decision on Scienter
On June 1, 2023, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion (authored by Justice Clarence Thomas), providing a long-awaited answer to the question of whether, under the Federal Claims Act (“FCA”), a defendant “knowingly” submits a false claim by reporting its retail cash price as its “usual and customary price” rather than the lower and more-common price offered through discount programs. The Seventh Circuit twice held that such reporting is not a “knowingly” false claim under the FCA because “a reasonable person” could reach a similar interpretation of “usual and customary price.” United States v. Supervalu Inc., 9 F.4th 455 (7th Cir. 2021); United States ex rel. Proctor v. Safeway, Inc., 30 F.4th 649 (7th Cir. 2022). The Supreme Court vacated the Seventh Circuit’s judgments and ruled that the FCA scienter requirement refers to a defendant’s knowledge and subjective beliefs – not to what an objectively reasonable person may have known or believed. United States ex rel. Shutte v. SuperValu Inc., 598 U.S. (2023) The Court also determined that facially ambiguous language is not a sufficient reason to prohibit a finding that a defendant knew its claims were false. Continue reading ›
Kandis L. Kovalsky in The Legal Intelligencer: Phila. Attorneys Reach $9M Settlement for Whistleblower Claims the US Declined
In a recent Legal Intelligencer article, Phila. Attorneys Reach $9M Settlement for Whistleblower Claims the US Declined, Philadelphia-based litigation reporter Aleeza Furman detailed how Kang Haggerty attorneys secured a $9 million settlement with defendants in a False Claims Act qui tam lawsuit over the distribution of illegitimate fentanyl prescriptions. Continue reading ›
Kovalsky to present on Touhy Subpoena Practice for Federal Bar Association – May 10, 2023
Kang Haggerty member Kandis L. Kovalsky will be a presenter for Touhy Subpoena Practice – Getting the Information You Need to Prove (or Disprove) the Case, on behalf of the Qui Tam Section of the Federal Bar Association. The webinar will take place from 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm EDT on May 10, 2023.
The program will provide varied perspectives from government, relator, and defense counsel on Touhy subpoena practice in declined False Claims Act cases. The conversation will cover the process and procedural elements of Touhy subpoenas, negotiations with the Government, and use of that information in litigation.
Joining Kandis on the panel will be moderator Zachary Arbitman, Feldman Shepherd; Paul Kaufman, United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania; and Amanda B. Robinson, Morgan Lewis.
March may be over, but every month is Women’s History Month for Whistleblowers
As the month of March draws to a close, the Whistleblower Advocates of Kang Haggerty LLC were excited to see many of the valued contributions of women whistleblowers recognized as part of Women’s History Month celebrations. We join with many of our Taxpayer Against Fraud (TAF) colleague law firms in commemorating female whistleblowers who courageously transcend systemic biases to combat fraud. Continue reading ›