Author Archives: Site Administrator
Can Whistleblowers Use HIPAA to Support Their Claims?
HIPPA and Whistleblower Cases Most people in the healthcare industry know that documents covered by HIPAA must be treated with utmost secrecy and care. Protecting patient privacy is a big deal. Thus, questions frequently arise when a healthcare worker wants to blow the whistle on fraud. Can he or she use HIPAA protected documents… Read More »
The U.S. Trade War with China – How the False Claims Act Can Help
The United States is currently at war with the People’s Republic of China – a trade war. The False Claims Act has an important role to play in this battle. Every year foreign countries, but most particularly China, engage in a practice of “dumping” goods into the U.S. market. Generally, this occurs when a… Read More »
Are “Hot Yoga” Moves Just Hot or Copyrightable?
Can You Copyright Yoga Moves? Under federal copyright law, it does not take much originality for a work to merit copyright protection under the liberal standard for such protection. Indeed, the standard is that only a work have been independently created and been the product of minimal creativity. For years, the founder of Bikram… Read More »
What Notice Must an LLC Provide to Appraise a Member’s Interest?
We previously posted on this blog: “LLC Members Appraisal Rights: What Are They?” In that post, we explained the eight circumstances in which a member may exercise appraisal rights, i.e., an “appraisal event,” and how the appraisal process works for the LLC and affected members. The purpose of this blog post, however, is to inform you… Read More »
What are Violations of the False Claims Act?
Any fraud on a federal government agency could potentially be a violation of the federal False Claims Act. Not every government fraud involves millions of dollars. Take, for example, a recent settlement announced by the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General. According to the DOJ’s press release, Douglas daCosta of Livermore California,… Read More »
What are Appraisal Rights for LLC Members?
LLC Members Appraisal Rights: What are they? “Appraisal rights” are rights that minority members of an LLC have to be paid the fair market value of their ownership interest in certain circumstances. In essence, these rights give a member a legal right to be bought out of the company when major changes are made… Read More »
U.S. Tax Court Expands the Scope of I.R.S. Whistleblower Awards
Business Litigation Attorney Explains: I.R.S. Whistleblower Awards Expanded by U.S Tax Court The statute governing whistleblower claims, I.R.C. § 7623, grants awards to private citizens who provide information to the IRS that leads to the collection of at least $2 million in taxes, penalties, interest, and “additional amounts.” The whistleblower can get an award… Read More »
Help! Someone Has Served Me With a Subpoena For My Bank Records!
Served With Subpoena for Bank Records? Business Litigation Law Firm shares the following tips: Occasionally, we will get contacted by clients who have been served with a subpoena demanding that person or business turn over its general ledgers, bank statements, tax returns, or other financial records. They often question whether they are, in fact,… Read More »
Can an LLC Member Recover the Cost of an Appraisal of the Member’s Interest?
In a proceeding to appraise an LLC minority member’s interest, the Court shall determine the appropriate costs for a court-appointed appraiser and is obligated to assess them against the LLC. The exception is when the Court finds the members acted arbitrarily, vexatiously or not in good faith, which allows the Court to assess the… Read More »
Government Child Care Fraud Hurts Families
If you are not part of a low-income family with small children, you may not have heard of the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF). Similar to the Medicaid program, CCDF is a joint program between the federal government and the states that provides child care subsidies to eligible low-income families so the parent(s)… Read More »