Whistleblower in Novartis kickback settlement to get $109 mln

REUTERS

The former Novartis sales representative whose whistleblower lawsuit against the drugmaker led to a $678 million settlement with the federal government and various states earlier this year will receive an award of $109.4 million.

The payment for Oswald Bilotta, who accused Novartis in 2011 of routinely paying illegal kickbacks to doctors, was disclosed Wednesday in a joint filing in Manhattan federal court by Oswald and the Southern District of New York U.S. Attorney’s office. read more »

Drug-testing lab will pay nearly $12M to settle federal claim it paid kickbacks to Bellevue doctors

SEATTLE TIMES

A Tacoma-based drug-testing laboratory is part of a nearly $12 million federal settlement over an alleged kickback scheme involving urine tests and a physician-owned laboratory in Bellevue.

Cordant Health Solutions, a Denver-based toxicology testing firm with a facility in Tacoma, will pay $11.9 million to settle federal allegations that it funneled illegal kickbacks to Northwest Physicians Laboratories of Bellevue, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Seattle announced Tuesday. read more »

Bribery and the Motivation of Bidders on Foreign Contracts

UCLA ANDERSON

For more than 40 years, the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has made it illegal to bribe public officials to win government business. Since the act’s adoption in 1977, the Department of Justice has brought more than 390 enforcement actions under the law. In 2019, the agency, together with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which also is responsible for enforcement, imposed a total of $2.6 billion in fines, the most ever for a single year.

In the largest single case, LM Ericsson, the Swedish telecom giant, in December 2019 agreed to pay more than $1 billion to settle DOJ and SEC charges that it funneled illegal payments to officials in China, Djibouti, Indonesia and other countries to win equipment contracts. In June 2019, Walmart agreed to pay $282 million to settle FCPA charges that it bribed officials in Mexico, China, Brazil and India for permits to build stores. read more »

U.S. SEC chief 'worries' about retail investors trying to get rich quick

REUTERS

The head of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Thursday said he is worried about the risks to retail investors who are increasingly making short-term bets via low-cost trading platforms rather than sticking to long-term investments.

“We’re seeing significant inflows from retail investors who conduct more trading than investing,” Jay Clayton said in a Thursday interview.

The rise of new, low-cost, easy-to-use trading apps combined with ultra-low interest rates has unleashed a flood of retail money into stocks from investors looking to cash in on the market rally. That money has often flowed into highly risky trades, including stocks that have filed for bankruptcy. read more »