A federal jury found for whistleblowers in reaching a verdict that State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. knowingly provided fraudulent claims to the federal government under the flood insurance program for Hurricane Katrina regarding damage to at least one home, the San Francisco Chronicle reported on Tuesday. In reaching its special verdict, the jury found that State Farm...
The Wall Street Journal reports today that Justice Department officials have recommended joining a federal whistleblower lawsuit filed by former teammate Floyd Landis that alleges that Lance Armstrong and team managers defrauded the U.S. government when they accepted money from the U.S. Postal Service and then violated their contract by using performance-enhancing drugs...
On January 1, 2013, the amendments to the California False Claims Act, signed into law last year by Governor Jerry Brown, took effect. The amendments, among other things, expand the definition of a claim under the state False Claims Act, increase the civil penalties for each violation of the law, and provide qui tam plaintiffs with up to 33% of the proceeds of the action or...
The Journal of Accountancy reports that the Internal Revenue Service has proposed regulations for whistleblower awards in violation of tax law cases and for the disclosure of tax return information. The proposed regulations are intended to provide general rules for submitting claims to the IRS, rules for proceedings, and factors to evaluate the size of an award. Read the...
Mohanbi “Mohan” Ramchandani and his business Mohan’s Custom Tailors, located in Manhattan, pleaded guilty to tax evasion and agreed to pay $5.5 million in damages and penalties to settle a first of its kind prosecution for tax evasion under New York State's False Claims Act. The guilty plea related to a ten-year scheme to evade payment of New York...
