This research project examines whether lawyers -- like other corporate insiders -- are able to take advantage of the financial incentives that are available under the False Claims Act. See Kathleen Clark & Nancy Moore: Financial Rewards for Whistleblowing Lawyers, 56 Boston College Law Review 1697 (2015)

1. Lawyer-Whistleblowers,
the False Claims Act and
Confidentiality
Kathleen Clark
ABA Center for Professional Responsibility
June 2, 2016

2. False Claims Act
cases
sound
in
fraud

3. heightened
pleading
requirements
Fed. R. Civ. Proc. 9(b)

4. organizational
insiders

5. confidentiality
contract
fiduciary
professional rules

6. Defendants
counterclaims
preemptive suits
disqualification motions

7. Relators
preemption
public interest exception

8. scope
of
exception

9. documents
not
relevant
to
fraud

10. may
disclose
fraud

11. lawyer-
relators

12. 6
FCA cases
lawyer-relators
suing
clients

13. 6
losses
for
lawyer-relators

14. 2
lost on
non-ethics
grounds

15. 4
lost on
confidentiality

16. US ex rel Doe
v
X Corp
E.D. Va. 1994

17. Virginia
Code Prof. Resp.:
only if
evidence
clearly establishes
fraud

18. Bury
v
Community Hospitals
of Central California
CA 2002

19. California:
to prevent crimes
likely to result in
death or
subst. bodily injury

20. US ex rel FLPA
v
Quest
2nd Cir 2013

21. NY ex rel Danon
v
Vanguard
NY SCt 2015

22. New York:
reasonably
believes
necessary
to prevent
crime

23. Model Rule 1.6(b)(3)
to
prevent / mitigate
/rectify
client fraud

24. lawyer-relator
suing
non-client

25. US ex rel Holmes
v
Northrop Grumman
5th Cir 2016

26. Mississippi / DC / Model
Rules

27. State variations
crime / fraud
non-monetary crime
prevent / rectify

28. Lawyer-Whistleblowers,
the False Claims Act and
Confidentiality
Kathleen Clark
kathleen_clark@mac.com
ABA Center for Professional Responsibility
June 1, 2016