ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Government Announces Record Whistleblower Awards Recently, two government agencies reported record whistleblower awards to be paid out on two separate cases.[1]  In the first, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) reported that two whistleblowers would receive a combined $61 million in awards.  The SEC’s previous record was a […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Illegal Churning of Accounts Securities Fraud and Financial Elder Abuse A recent Southern California case of stockbroker churning reveals the seriousness of allegations of broker misconduct, especially when the misconduct targets seniors. Churning means excessive trading by a broker in a client’s account largely to generate commissions. Stock […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER False Claims Act Cases Against Healthcare Industry Of the $3.7 billion in 2017 false claim settlements and judgments, $2.4 billion involved false claims from the healthcare industry. Typically, these false claims cases involved false claims for reimbursement, kickbacks, and other fraudulent schemes against the government’s Medicare and Medicaid […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Be Wary of Anti-Volatility Gimmicks On Monday, February 5, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by more than 1,179 points, the biggest daily point loss in its history. Although the market recovered, many investors, including seniors and those nearing retirement, understandably have the jitters.  In a volatile market, […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Bipartisan Budget Act Enhances Whistleblower Awards The recently enacted Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 includes two important provisions favoring whistleblower awards in tax avoidance whistleblower cases, False Claims Act cases, and securities fraud whistleblower cases. The San Francisco County and California whistleblower/qui tam attorneys at Evans Law Firm […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Understanding Immediate Annuities An immediate annuity is an insurance contract where the policyholder makes a single lump-sum payment and then begins receiving back almost immediately regular income payments. Imagine, for example, you’re over 60 and sell your home and decide to put some or all of the proceeds […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Large Whistleblower Awards Keep Coming False Claims Act 2017 was a banner year for whistleblower cases under the False Claims Act. The Department of Justice obtained more than $3.7 billion in settlements and judgments from civil cases involving fraud and false claims against the government in the past […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Caregiving Gone Wrong: Caregiver Fraud A silver picture frame is missing, a gold bracelet is gone, a new cellphone can’t be found, a bank account hemorrhages cash. Talk to anyone who’s hired a caregiver for an older loved one, and theft is almost always a major worry. Bringing […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Be Wary of Annuity Sales Presentations Have you ever returned to your car in a shopping center parking lot to find a flyer on your windshield inviting you to a free lunch and estate planning seminar? Such tactics are often used by insurance agents to lure seniors especially […]

ATTORNEY NEWSLETTER Financial Elder Abuse Over this past weekend the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the largest coordinated sweep of elder abuse fraudsters in history. More than 250 defendants around the world were identified as victimizing millions of American seniors. The cases filed against the wrongdoers include criminal, civil […]