Health Care Fraud Redux?
June 26, 2008
At times in the past decade, health care fraud seemed to be the top priority of the DOJ. Although nationally it's now been eclipsed by corporate accountability, the DOJ has focused on health care fraud and abuse in two of the nation's largest federal prosecutors' offices: Los Angeles and Houston. The Central District of California and the Southern District of Texas ' supposedly fraud and abuse hot spots ' are setting up dedicated Medicare Fraud Task Forces based on a model that enjoyed great success in the Southern District of Florida.
Judicial Roulette: Recusal Motions in Criminal Cases
June 26, 2008
A recent Ninth Circuit decision vacating a conviction because the trial judge failed to recuse himself, and a pending recusal application by convicted executive Jamie Olis, remind us that sometimes defendants try to improve their judicial lot through recusal, though with little hope for success.
Attorney-Client Privilege
May 27, 2008
This article examines two issues that can arise when a company and its former officer or director are adverse to each other and one seeks access to potentially privileged documents of the other.
Going It Alone
May 27, 2008
U.S. antitrust enforcement, once the impetus for numerous foreign blocking statutes, now epitomizes the type of global cooperation necessary for effective law enforcement. But the past six years offer potent counterexamples that highlight the dangers of unilateralism and disrespect for foreign sovereignty ' some relatively minor, others far more consequential.
Lawyers and Money Laundering
May 27, 2008
While the duty of lawyers representing financial institutions in the U.S. is almost solely toward their clients, in the EU, lawyers have affirmative obligations to report suspected money-laundering activity to government authorities. In other words, lawyers may be involuntarily conscripted as enforcement agents or 'gatekeepers' at the institutions they represent. American lawyers in the European offices of U.S.-based 'international' law firms are not exempt.
Are the Sentencing Guidelines More Than 'Advisory'?
April 25, 2008
The Second Circuit's recent decision in <i>United States v. Cutler</i> cast a cloud over the question of how far a sentencing judge can depart from the so-called 'advisory' Sentencing Guidelines. In late December 2007, the Supreme Court appeared to have settled that issue. It remains to be seen how the Second Circuit's law will develop in this area.
Supreme Court Revisits Money Laundering
April 25, 2008
On March 3, 2008, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in the case of <i>Cuellar v. United States.</i> The decision, expected by the end of June, will interpret the 'intent to conceal' provision of the federal Anti-Money Laundering statutes.
