Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Merchants Get Another Extension to File Claims in Their Class Action Against Visa and Mastercard Digital Transactions News – August 14, 2024 Merchants were granted a second extension late Tuesday for filing claims against Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. in their ongoing class-action lawsuit against [...]
It’s almost something out of a movie—A 22 year-old Florida resident, Christopher Spellman, running a Medicare fraud scheme involving illegal bribes, unwitting elderly participants, and tens of millions of dollars of unnecessary medical equipment paid by the government. Spellman and his co-conspirators ran Dimon Business Solution, a company that posed [...]
The legal world continues to navigate the lingering effects posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Fraud related to relief efforts and financial aid programs remains a significant concern. The DOJ has been cracking down on investigations, and we’re seeing more and more settlements this year. Yesterday, August 13, DOJ reaffirmed its [...]
Not looking so sunny for one Southern California Dental company. Yesterday (August 8) it was announced that West Coast Dental Administrative Services LLC (previously known as West Coast Dental Services Inc.), along with its former founders and owners, have agreed to pay $6.3 million to resolve allegations of violating the [...]
Yesterday, August 8, 2024, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced an award of over $1 million to a whistleblower. This individual provided critical information that led to an enforcement action targeting unlawful activities in digital asset markets. The CFTC’s Director of Enforcement, Ian McGinley, emphasized the growing importance of [...]
Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: 6 Swipe Fee Plaintiffs ‘Arbitrarily’ Picked for 2025 Trial Law360 – August 7, 2024 (subscription required) Six retailers including department store giant Target will go to trial in 2025 on claims that Visa and Mastercard overcharged them, a Manhattan federal judge said Wednesday, explaining that [...]
Constantine Cannon whistleblower partner Gordon Schnell was published in the American Banker on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) becoming the latest agency to take affirmative steps to clear the path for whistleblowers. This comes from the agency’s July 24 press release and circular warning companies away from using broad nondisclosure agreements [...]
Burlington County Eye Physicians (BCEP), an eye care practice based in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, along with Dr. Gregory H. Scimeca, agreed to pay $469,232 to resolve accusations of submitting false claims for medically unnecessary tests to Medicare and the Federal Employee Health Benefit (FEHB) Program. The resolution includes claims that were brought [...]
Last week (August 1), the Department of Justice (DOJ) formally launched its much-anticipated Corporate Whistleblower Awards Pilot Program. It is designed to fill some of the gaps among the existing whistleblower rewards programs — primarily the False Claims Act and the SEC, CFTC, FinCEN, and IRS whistleblower programs — by [...]
Maersk Line Ltd., a subsidiary of the Danish shipping giant A.P. Moller-Maersk, has reached a settlement with the U.S. Labor Department following allegations it retaliated against a seaman who reported safety concerns. The company, which operates the world’s largest U.S.-flagged fleet of international containerships, faced accusations of dismissing a crew member [...]
