In this episode of Ropes & Gray’s False Claims Act podcast series, Public Disclosure, litigation partner Kirsten Mayer and her guests consider how the Department of Justice will approach FCA enforcement in light of COVID-19, and the role data and data analytics will play. Kirsten talks with Jim Dowden, head of Ropes & Gray’s white collar practice, as well as Matt Bedan and Neil Goradia of Forensic Risk Alliance. The group explores what data the government is likely to mine, including data outside of the health care space. They also provide insight into what in-house compliance functions should be doing now to mitigate risk (hint: it involves using their own data).

In the third episode of Ropes & Gray’s False Claims Act podcast series, Public Disclosure, litigation partner Kirsten Mayer considers the Department of Justice’s 2019 guidance to companies who face investigation under the False Claims Act. DOJ has encouraged companies to cooperate, self-disclose and remediate compliance issues, but what—if anything—should a company expect to receive in return? Her guest is Professor Jacob Elberg from Seton Hall Law School, who handled FCA cases for the government for many years in his prior role as an AUSA and Health Care Fraud Chief in the District of New Jersey. The two discuss the DOJ guidance, what DOJ is trying to promote with it, and what the DOJ actually appears to be doing in its FCA settlements, based on Professor Elberg’s recent analysis of civil settlement agreements in his article, “A Path to Data-Driven Health Care Enforcement.” The results may surprise you.

In the second episode of Ropes & Gray’s False Claims Act podcast series, Public Disclosure, litigation partner Kirsten Mayer and her guests delve into the knowledge requirement under the FCA. Kirsten talks with Kim Friday, a partner at Osborn Maledon, and Erica Blachman Hitchings, a member of the Whistleblower Law Collaborative. Both guests prosecuted FCA matters for the Department of Justice for many years and now represent whistleblowers in FCA cases. They cover the nuts and bolts of proving a company’s intent, and share their insight into what DOJ and whistleblowers look for when they are building and evaluating a case.

Ropes & Gray’s new podcast series, Public Disclosure, is your guide to the False Claims Act. In this inaugural episode, Ropes & Gray litigation partner Kirsten Mayer hosts two guests: Robert Patten, who is currently President and CEO of Taxpayers Against Fraud (TAF), a leading non-profit organization promoting whistleblowers and whistleblower laws, and Joshua Levy, a Ropes & Gray partner and co-chair of the firm’s litigation & enforcement practice. They discuss how to navigate the False Claims Act world, including how investigations work, what companies facing the FCA can do to reduce risk, and TAF’s role in shaping the law and promoting whistleblower actions.