On February 6, 2017, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania announced that a False Claims settlement was reached between the United States Department of Justice and Para-Plus Translations, Inc., (“Para Plus”) a New Jersey corporation that contracts with federal and state agencies, among other clients, for interpretation, transcription and translation services.
The settlement resolved allegations in a multi-state/federal Qui Tam whistleblower lawsuit filed by attorney Jared A. Jacobson, Esq., now of the Law Firm of Jacobson & Rooks, LLC, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The false claims suit was handled on behalf of the United States by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania. The settlement that was reached resolved claims that Para-Plus defrauded the United States government, in violation of the federal and various state False Claims Acts, by submitting false claims for payment to various federal and state agencies, including components of the United States Department of Justice. Specifically, the Complaint alleged that Para-Plus submitted invoices to federal and state government agencies that purposefully overstated the travel time and mileage incurred by its interpreters.
This false claims case captioned United States ex rel. Kimberly Martin v. Para-Plus Translations, Inc. and Robert Santiago, III, Civil No. 14-3952 (EDPA) were investigated by the Office of Inspector General of the United States Department of Justice. Assistant United States Attorney Colin J. Callahan handled the case on behalf of the United States. Deputy Attorney General Edward K. Black and Kent D. Anderson handled this matter on behalf of the states of Delaware and New Jersey. The whistleblower was represented by Jared A. Jacobson, Esq.
The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability. The United States Department of Justice’s press release can be found here.
The Law Firm of Jacobson & Rooks, LLC represents whistleblowers in False Claims Act/Qui Tam cases. Besides practicing as a licensed attorney, one of the Firm’s Partners, Franklin J. Rooks Jr., is a licensed physical therapist, bringing extensive experience and industry knowledge as they relate to Medicare compliance and medical billing. The Firm’s combination of false claims acts experience and direct medical/industry knowledge provides us with a unique advantage to “get it” quickly in the healthcare fraud area, in addition to other industries that involve any company doing any business with the government and committing fraud. The Law Firm of Jacobson & Rooks, LLC also represents victims of retaliation who complain about a false claims act violation and suffer an adverse employment action as a result. For more information, please contact us at (856) 746-6332