Qui Tam Section: [VIRTUAL] False Claims Act Today – District of New Jersey

Hosted by the FBA’s Qui Tam Section, often in cooperation with local FBA chapters, “The False Claims Act Today” is a discussion series that examines the details of real-life FCA practice in specific jurisdictions. Sessions typically focus on a single federal district and feature an experienced local panel that includes an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the district; a federal judge; a relator-side attorney; and a defense attorney.

We hope to resume in-person sessions of “The FCA Today” in 2021, but for now we’re conducting them online via the Zoom platform. For this session on the District of New Jersey, attendees can expect a brief overview of the FCA process, including a review of case law in the Third Circuit, and a detailed look at:

• The types of FCA case most welcomed by the district’s U.S. Attorney Office;
• How D.N.J. prosecutors work with Main Justice to investigate complaints and weigh intervention;
• How D.N.J. judges evaluate seal extensions and seal violations;
• The local impact of the Supreme Court’s recent FCA decisions; and
• Where D.N.J. prosecutors fall in national debates over the viability of medical necessity cases, DOJ dismissal of relator-led cases, and other issues.

About the Presenters

R. Scott Oswald – Chair, FBA Qui Tam Section (moderator)

Scott Oswald is an accomplished trial lawyer who has brought more than 40 trials to verdict. His cases have recovered more than $300 million in judgments and settlements. A fellow of the prestigious College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, he received his law degree from Howard University and honed his skills at Trial Lawyers College, founded by the legendary Gerry Spence. Mr. Oswald litigates employment and whistleblower actions nationwide. Among his results:

• First jury verdict under new whistleblower protections in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2013|
• First Sarbanes-Oxley Act liability verdict to withstand appeal
• First jury verdict under 2009 anti-retaliation provisions of False Claims Act
• First Dodd-Frank Act retaliation lawsuit to reach discovery in federal court

Mr. Oswald is chair of the Federal Bar Association’s Qui Tam Section and immediate past chair of the FBA’s Professional Ethics Committee. Lawdragon ranks him as one of the top 500 plaintiff-side employment lawyers in the country.

Ken Abell

Ken Abell is a founding partner of Abell Eskew Landau LLP (AEL), a boutique law firm specializing in qui tam defense and False Claims Act Litigation, government enforcement matters and white collar criminal defense. AEL represents numerous entities and individuals in connection with qui tam matters under the False Claims Act, including several large hospital systems and healthcare providers. Until 2018, Ken served as Chief of Healthcare Fraud for the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, Civil Division. In his ten years as an Assistant United States Attorney, Ken litigated and resolved some of the Eastern District’s most significant FCA matters, including some of the nation’s largest healthcare and mortgage fraud cases. Ken began his legal career as a commercial litigator at a prominent litigation boutique in Chicago. Thereafter, he was a law clerk to the Honorable Theodore H. Katz in the Southern District of New York, before joining the United States Attorney’s Office in 2008.

Lee Cortes

Lee is an Assistant United States Attorney at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey. Lee currently serves as the Chief of the Health Care Fraud Unit, supervising a team of approximately 12 AUSAs and directing all of the Office’s criminal and civil investigations and prosecutions of health care fraud offenses.  Before Lee was promoted to that role in January 2020, he served as the Deputy Chief of the Special Prosecutions Division since July 2017, where he oversaw approximately 12 prosecutors who investigate and prosecute public corruption matters. Before then, Lee was a line assistant in the General Crimes Unit in 2010 and in the Special Prosecutions Division from 2011 until 2017. Prior to joining the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Lee worked at Kaye Scholer in New York from 2003 to 2010, focusing on white collar defense, life sciences, products liability, and commercial litigation. Lee graduated from King’s College and Fordham Law School.

Dave Dauenheimer

David Dauenheimer is a Deputy Chief in the Government Fraud Unit of the Criminal Division at the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey. He serves as the Affirmative Civil Enforcement Coordinator and previously served as the Health Care Fraud Coordinator from 2011 until 2015. Mr. Dauenheimer is responsible for civil investigations of government fraud offenses including violations of the False Claims Act, FIRREA, and other federal laws. Since joining the office in 2008, he has been responsible for numerous large-scale qui tam/civil investigations, including resolutions involving a multinational device manufacturer, pharmaceutical companies, and companies contracting with numerous federal agencies including the Department of Defense.

Mr. Dauenheimer previously served as a Senior Litigation Counsel handling appellate and class action matters in the Office of Immigration Litigation at the Department of Justice. Prior to joining the Department of Justice in 2002, Mr. Dauenheimer served for seven years with the Judge Advocate General’s Corps of the U.S. Army, where he was a criminal prosecutor, claims attorney, deployed to Bosnia in support of Operation Joint Guard, and was selected to be the Army’s liaison to the Department of Justice’s Torts Branch where he served as a trial attorney for two years.

Mr. Dauenheimer received his JD from the University of Colorado, Boulder School of Law, and his BA in Civil Engineering from Lafayette College, Easton PA.

Jay P. Holland

A principal in Joseph, Greenwald & Laake’s Civil Litigation Group and chair of the firm’s Labor, Employment, and Qui Tam Whistleblower practice, Jay Holland is a renowned employment and qui tam litigator known for taking on tough cases and achieving exceptional results. Jay counsels clients in individual and class action cases involving gender and race discrimination and sexual harassment, violations of the wage and hour laws, and wrongful termination. Jay has an active qui tam practice, representing whistleblowers in actions under the federal False Claims Act.

Judge John Michael Vazquez

Nominated by Barack Obama on March 26, 2015, to a seat vacated by Joel A. Pisano. Confirmed by the Senate on January 27, 2016, and received commission on January 29, 2016.

Registration

Registration will close Monday, September 21 at 11AM ET.

Registration Fees

• FBA Members – $0
• Nonmembers – $10

Registrants will receive Zoom login details on the day before the event.

Registration is now closed

Cancellation Policy

No refunds will be made for cancellations received after the close of business on September 15, 2020. No-shows will be billed. Substitutions may be made at any time upon notification. Please contact Ariel White at awhite@fedbar.org with cancellation and/or substitution requests.

CLE

Please note that CLE credit is not offered for this webinar.

Email Communication Policy

By registering for this event, you agree to receive email communications from the Federal Bar Association and affiliated sponsors of the program concerning event details, Continuing Legal Education certification, programming changes, upcoming events, surveys, and post-event communications.

Recording Disclaimer

By registering for an FBA webinar, you agree to the recording of audio and visual content presented during the live event and consent to subsequent use of the recording by the FBA. You agree that the recording is the sole property of the FBA and that the recording may be used by the FBA in any manner in its sole and absolute discretion. This recording may include questions and poll responses provided by you during the live event. If you do not consent to the recording and the FBA’s use of the same, do not register for the event.

If you have any questions regarding this program, please contact Laura Mulhern, Sections and Divisions Manager.