Podcast

Episode 17 | Is DOJ Allowed to Share Privileged Documents with Whistleblowers in FCA Disputes?

Host Jonathan Porter welcomes Husch Blackwell partner Kip Randall back to the program to dig deeper into Omni Healthcare, Inc. et al v. MD Spine Solutions LLC et al., a False Claims Act litigation in which the defendant inadvertently waived privilege by sharing documents with the U.S. government, documents that later found their way to the whistleblower.

The discussion begins with a brief summary of what information the Department of Justice can access through civil investigative demands (CIDs) and what is off limits to government investigators, including documents that fall under attorney-client privilege; however, the right to privilege can be waived. Such waivers can be intentional or accidental, with the latter circumstance occurring when document reviews in response to CID requests fail to catch privileged material. The conversation then explores how waivers—intentional or inadvertent—work in practice and how they impact the arc of litigation.

Most prosecutors—most of the time—are extremely conscientious about coming into contact with potentially privileged information, but when such vigilance lapses, it can have serious implications for defending against FCA allegations, such as those seen in the MD Spine case. MD Spine highlights the limitations placed upon the government in its custodial role concerning those with whom the government can share privileged...

Read Full Story: https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMi6AFBVV95cUxQMkFReEdPaFZHVWlKY2JMX1F0...