All posts by cfinertystelzner

In October 2021, the U.S. Department of Justice launched a Civil Cyber-Fraud Initiative, aimed at using the False Claims Act to pursue government contractors and grant recipients who engage in cybersecurity-related fraud.  The Initiative targets businesses that knowingly provide the government with deficient cybersecurity products or services, or misrepresent their cybersecurity practices or protocols, or fail to monitor and promptly report cybersecurity breaches. The Initiative is designed to encourage whistleblowers to come forward and report misconduct that threatens the security of the government’s sensitive information and data systems.  Such misconduct puts at risk not only U.S. national security information but... read more

A new pilot program launched by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York may provide solace, and opportunities, for whistleblowers facing potential criminal exposure.  United States Attorney Damian Williams announced SDNY’s Whistleblower Pilot Program (the “Program”) on January 10, 2024.  Under the Program, whistleblowers who meet certain conditions may qualify to enter into non-prosecution agreements in exchange for voluntarily disclosing information regarding criminal conduct and cooperating with the government. The Program applies to individuals who disclose to SDNY “information regarding criminal conduct undertaken by or through public or private companies, exchanges, financial institutions, investment advisers,... read more

A federal judge in Virginia has rejected a challenge from the Pharmaceutical Coalition for Patient Access (PCPA) to a negative advisory opinion issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (“HHS OIG”) that found that PCPA’s proposed patient-assistance program would run afoul of the Anti-Kickback Statute (“AKS”).  The decision comes after a federal appeals court in New York rejected a similar challenge to HHS OIG made by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer. The PCPA case revolved around PCPA’s proposed program to provide financial assistance to financially-qualified Medicare Part D patients who use oncology drugs (Medicare Part... read more

On January 10, 2024, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that global software company SAP had agreed to pay over $220M for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) following an investigation by the DOJ and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). SAP acknowledged that it had paid bribes to government officials to obtain public sector business in seven foreign countries. SAP then falsely recorded the bribes in its books and records as legitimate business expenses. While the SEC is required to maintain the anonymity of whistleblowers and did not attribute the SAP recovery to a whistleblower, the largest SEC... read more

In response to Russia’s unprovoked aggression against Ukraine, which culminated in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the United States has enacted sweeping sanctions against Russian oligarchs, government officials, and entities operating in key sectors of Russia’s economy.  These sanctions, which are enforced by the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), ensure that Russian oligarchs do not enjoy U.S. resources, that U.S. products do not wind up in Russian military equipment, and that the U.S. financial system is not used to facilitate transactions that support the Russian war effort.  However, there are individuals and corporations working... read more