Shareholder Rachel Naor published an article titled “The Top Five Lesson I Learned in My First Five Years of Practice” for the American Bar Association’s Solo and Small Firm Litigation Committee, which is available on the Committee’s website page. Rachel’s top tip for new lawyers is to be the one who owns the facts of a case. In other words, be the member of the team who commits the case timeline to memory, identifies key documents, and know the witness testimony down cold. Rachel also emphasized that it is important for young lawyers to raise their hands and ask for opportunities to help them feel fulfilled and to round out their experience. Other key tips Rachel shared: learn and execute excellent time management skills; be a team player and support the other lawyers on your team; and focus on building relationships, both internally at your firm and with your clients.
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Publication on Pleading Standards in Anti-Kickback Statute FCA Cases
Ellen London, Li Yu, and Gregg Shapiro published an article in Law360 entitled “Recent Cases Clarify FCA Kickback Pleading Standards.” The article provides a summary of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals’s decision in U.S. ex rel. Camburn v. Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp. and an analysis of how the Second Circuit’s three main holdings may affect ongoing and future AKS-based FCA cases.
Ellen London Attends WWCDA’s Annual Attorney Meeting
Ellen London traveled to the Sunshine State for two days of dynamic programming and catching up with colleagues at the Women’s White Collar Defense Association Annual Attorney Meeting, held in Miami. Ellen enjoyed visiting her home state, attending informative and insightful panel discussions covering hot legal topics, and connecting with fellow female practitioners. She especially enjoyed catching up with fellow members from small firms (pictured below), who are a part of the WWCDA Small Firm Initiative.
Ellen London Attends Federal Bar Association Annual Qui Tam Conference
Ellen London attended this year’s annual Federal Bar Association Qui Tam Conference in Washington, D.C. where over 400 attendees gathered to network and learn about the practical side of False Claims Act investigations and litigation. Ellen enjoyed connecting with her friends and colleagues from the FCA world and hearing about the latest developments.
Ellen London Presents MCLE on Whistleblower-Reward Programs for Bar Association of San Francisco
Ellen London attended the 2025 Labor and Employment Law Conference, hosted by The Bar Association of San Francisco, at the historic Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite, California. At the Conference, Ellen London, Jane Mackie, and Ari Yampolsky gave an MCLE presentation on February 8 titled “Rewards for Some, Risks for Others: What Every Employment Lawyer Should Know about Whistleblower-Reward Programs,” moderated by Jeff Osofsky, in which they discussed aspects of Whistleblower-reward programs that employment lawyers should be especially attuned to, including anti-retaliation provisions that protect individuals who come forward, the enforceability to releases in post-employment agreements, and best practices for compliance programs.
Ellen London Presents CLE on Ethics for Bar Association of San Francisco
Ellen London, Lily Becker, and Sharon Frase gave an MCLE presentation on January 30 titled “Ethics in Action – Client, Company, and Counsel Collide” at the 2025 Solo & Small Firm Annual Conference, hosted by the Bar Association of San Francisco, in which they discussed ethical dilemmas that may arise at different stages of litigation and how practitioners can navigate them.
Ellen London Publishes Article on Medicare Advantage Fraud
In December, Ellen London and Allison Cook published an article in the Winter 2025 Newsletter of the Federal Bar Association Qui Tam section covering the application of the False Claims Act to Medicare Advantage fraud. The article can be found here.
Rachel Naor and Michael Lundholm Publish Article in Journal of the Litigation Section of the California Lawyers Association
In August, Rachel Naor and Michael Lundholm published an article in the Journal of the Litigation Section of the California Lawyers Association on the key distinctions between California state and federal privilege law. The article focuses on three distinct areas where California and federal courts take different approaches to the application of the attorney client privilege. The article can be found here.
FINRA Escalates Unit Investment Trust Short Term Trading Enforcement
With FINRA announcing its largest enforcement settlement of 2020 last Wednesday with Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. for short term trading of Unit Investment Trusts (“UITs”), now is a good time to catch up with recent FINRA enforcement activity and the progress of one of its enforcement priorities over the last several years.
First, some recent history. The Stifel settlement appears to be the culmination of a four-year long push by FINRA to rein in firms it views as engaging in unsuitable short-term trading of UITs and other long-term investments.