Mississippi Whistleblower Lawyer Advises: What Claims are Covered by the False Claims Act?

The federal False Claims Act outlaws any activity that results in an individual or organization improperly obtaining money from the U.S. government. Historically, it has been used to fight false claims for payment, illegal selling of government property, kickbacks, or other “fleecing” of American taxpayers. If you are aware of this sort of illegal activity, you may be considering becoming a “whistleblower” under the False Claims Act.  Being a whistleblower is another term for bringing a “qui tam” claim, which is a Latin term meaning “he who sues for the king and himself.” In short, as a whistleblower in a qui tam case, you formally report government corruption for the good of society but are also making that report because you want to be paid a financial reward. To get that reward, a qui tam investigation needs to gather significant evidence that fraud has actually occurred within a specific timeframe and then report it before someone else does.

Before bringing a claim, it is important that you understand which types of behavior are covered by the False Claims Act. Not every act of deceit is a violation of the False Claims Act, and it primarily covers the fraudulent taking of money from the U.S. government.

If you are considering making a claim under the False Claims Act, you should know that there is extremely high risk that your whistleblowing will anger your employer. That anger can translate into retaliation against you, which often results in a whistleblower losing his or her job. You should know that retaliation is prohibited under the False Claims Act, however, and can result in your reinstatement, as well as other penalties such as double back pay, fines, and attorney fees.

Claims Covered by the False Claims Act

While there is not room in this post for a complete listing of all activities prohibited under The False Claims Act, a partial listing follows:

  1. Conducting business on behalf of the U.S. government that results in overpayment, and keeping that overpayment;
  2. Conducting business with the U.S. government in a way that results in payment for services that are not performed or received;
  3. Contracting with federal government for defective products;
  4. Purchasing government property from employees who lack the authority to make the sale;
  5. Conspiring to violate the False Claims Act;

Exceptions to the False Claims Act

While the federal government is generally interested in prosecuting fraud, there are several exceptions where a fraud claim cannot be brought by a whistleblower.

Interesting, under the False Claims Act an current or former member of the military cannot bring a claim against another active duty member of the military for claims discovered while the whistleblower was in the military.

Second, whistleblower claims cannot be made against members of Congress, the federal judiciary, and senior members of the executive branch of the federal government. The information in the whistleblower’s claim must be unknown to the government at the time it is made.

Third, tax fraud or violations of the IRS Code are not subject to whistleblower claims under the False Claims Act.

What Should You Do if You are Considering a Whistleblower Claim?

Are you considering filing a qui tam suit as a whistleblower? You will require the help of an experienced whistleblower attorney to decide whether the conduct you have observed constitutes a violation of the False Claims Act. Evidence gathering, dealing with the federal government’s attorneys, important deadlines, statutes of limitations, and filing requirements make your representation both complex and time-sensitive.

Call Mississippi Whistleblower Lawyer Barrett Law now at (601) 790-1505 if you are a whistleblower.

Having expert legal advice by your side can mean the difference between receiving your share of a whistleblower judgment and losing your career and livelihood. Call us today.

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Experienced Mississippi Trucking Attorney Explains: USDOT to Expand Drug Testing in 2018

If you are a long-haul trucker in Mississippi, you need to be aware of a new change in store for 2018 that could affect the way you earn your living. In response to the opioid epidemic in the United States, the United States Department of Transportation is adding additional drugs to the list to its drug-testing panel: hydrocodone, hydromorphone, oxymorphone, and oxycodone to its drug-testing panel.  Additionally, the USDOT is adding methylenedioxyamphetamine as an initial test analyte; and removing methylenedioxyethylamphetamine as a confirmatory test analyte.

These new drugs become subject to testing on January 1, 2018.

Of course, what makes these additional drugs complex to regulate is that, as opposed to illegal narcotics such as heroin or cocaine, the new additions are all legal with a prescription. Accordingly, you could have a positive test for them because you are using them according to a physician-issued prescription.

If you are required to take a drug test either as part of an employer mandated policy or after an accident, you need to know your rights. As opposed to having the presence of illegal drugs in your system, there may be a legitimate and legal reason that you have one of these substances in your system.  If you are disciplined as a result of a “hot” test for any of these drugs, it is imperative that you contact an experienced trucking attorney immediately to protect your rights.

The Challenges of Testing for Opioids

We are all familiar with laws regarding DUI and the roadside stops and breath tests to detect alcohol in the blood of a driver. While those tests are hardly perfect, they are based on much more predictable science than testing for opioids. When a person consumes alcohol, it first enters the body through ingestion, quickly enters the blood stream, and is then expelled from the body. If you were to graph the amount of alcohol in a person’s blood after drinking, the graph would resemble a traditional bell curve, with very small amounts of alcohol at the time of initial ingestion, rising amounts while it is in the blood stream, and a sharp decrease back down to zero once it is expelled.

Opioids, like many other drugs, do not behave in the system like alcohol. If you have ever been prescribed these drugs, you know that they accumulate in the body slowly over days.  That is because opioids accumulate in fat cells and do not just pass through the digestive and circulatory system like alcohol. Several days after using a prescribed opioid, you likely still have it excreting into your blood through fat cells that absorbed it days ago. If you have been taking a prescription opioid for a long period of time, you may be within the therapeutic dosage limits, but have enough of a prohibited drug in your system to suggest abuse. 

While opioids have existed for quite a while, the effort to regulate their use in industries such as trucking remains new. Unlike alcohol, testing protocols are not well developed and can erroneously suggest a person using opioids for a legitimate health issue is actually abusing them. 

What Should You Do if You Fail a Drug Test?

If you are accused of abusing opioids due to these new USDOT rules or any other company mandated drug testing, call an experienced trucking attorney to protect your rights.

Call Barrett Law now, an experienced Mississippi trucking law firm, to represent you if you have failed a drug test or are having other trucking-related legal problems

Barrett Law has the experience to protect your rights, your livelihood, and your income.  Contact us now at (601) 790-1505 to get experienced counsel on your side.

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Mississippi BP Oil Spill Lawyer Advises About a Recent Court Decision Regarding Settlements

The 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill was a devastating event for the Gulf Coast economy, culture, and environment. While BP’s handling of the incident remains a source of negligence claims, new claims have also arisen that BP is distributing damages to claimants unfairly as well. A May 2017 decision by the U.S Court of Appeal for the Fifth Circuit found that BP was calculating compensation in violation of the Court Supervised Settlement Program for the Deepwater Horizon Economic and Property Damages Class Action Settlement (“the Settlement”), the agreement reached between those affected by the spill and BP.

At issue is this suit was how compensation for BP Spill victims—in legal terms “claimants”—would have their damages calculated under the Settlement. The Settlement allows for five Industry Specific Methodologies (ISMs) for determining the amount that each plaintiff received. Basically, because so many types of claims affecting disparate economies (e.g. construction, fishing, educations, agriculture, tourism, etc.) separate compensation formulas were required.  Claimants were supposed to be able to choose the methodology for compensation that best matched their industry and were supposed to be able to choose the applicable period of harm for which they would be compensated. The compensation period had to be composed of consecutive months between May and December 2010.

Policy 495 of the Settlement consists of five methodologies that the claims administrator can use to calculate claimant compensation.  Essentially, the policy divides claimants into two categories:  Those engaged in construction, education, agriculture and professional services are subject to certain ISMs, and those engaged in everything else are subject to an AVMM.

Again, under the Settlement, claimants were supposed to be able to choose a period for which they would be compensated; the period had to be composed of consecutive months between May and December 2010. Claimants whose industries were best suited to the Annual Variable Margin Methodology (AVMM) received a close to “dollar for dollar” accounting of their loss during the compensation period chosen. Unfortunately, those who found themselves under other ISM’s found that the Settlement’s claim administrator was averaging their losses over both the chosen and unchosen months of the claims period. This seemed to fly in the face of the clear intent to the Settlement.

The Fifth Circuit found that ISM’s are intended to provide claimants with the right to choose a period of compensation of consecutive months from May until December 2010, but the application of the methodologies where the claimants’ months were averaged really results in that choice being meaningless. The court held that the AVMM method, with its more exact accounting, actually complied with the spirit of the Settlement’s Policy 495. The panel also concluded that all claimants involved in construction, education, agriculture and professional services should be subject to the AVMM.

Have you been injured as a result of an improperly calculated or administered claim? Important deadlines, statutes of limitations, and filing requirements make consulting with an experienced plaintiffs’ attorney with BP oil spill experience a vital step to protecting yourself, your livelihood, and your rights if you have suffered as a result of the Deepwater Horizon spill or are a claimant under the Settlement.

Contact Mississippi BP Oil Spill Attorney Jonathan Barrett at Barrett Law immediately to protect your rights

Call Mississippi BP Oil spill Attorney Barrett to set up a free initial consultation. Your BP oil spill claims are not simple, and you should not trust them to an attorney lacking the plaintiffs’ law and BP oil spill experience attorney Barrett possess. Call us now at (601)-790-1505 to protect your livelihood and life.

 

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Experienced Mississippi Worker’s Compensation Attorney Explains the Claim Process

Have you experienced a workplace accident? Injured employees contact me frequently with a variety of questions regarding worker’s compensation claims.  Below is a list of answers to commonly asked questions. Because being injured takes your entire focus, it is better to understand the worker’s compensation process prior to any injury occurring. Once injured, retain an experienced worker’s compensation attorney immediately to protect your rights, employment, and livelihood.

Do I Have to Report All Accidents?

You should.  If you do not report an accident, your employer can deny the claim later or challenge whether it occurred in the workplace. Delay in reporting can also lead to difficulties in gathering evidence. Of course, the problem is that not all accidents immediately seem serious enough to report, and only become serious as a medical condition later develops. Kansas has struck a balance and requires employees to report any accident within 30 days. While you have 30 days, report all accidents immediately.

How Do I File a Worker’s Compensation Claim?

Employers must provide you with a worker’s compensation claim form. You simply fill out the appropriate section and return it to your employer. Your employer will complete the form and submit it to its insurer. If the claim is timely filed and there is no dispute about it, the claim will simply be paid out.

However, if your employer disputes your claim, you will have to request a hearing from the local worker’s compensation office. If you are forced into taking this route, it is vital that you contact an experienced worker’s compensation attorney to help you receive payment for your claim.

What Sort of Documentation Should I Keep?

Like all legal claims, a worker’s compensation case is document intensive. As the old saying goes, “if it isn’t documented, it didn’t happen.” Make sure you retain a copy of the claim you filed and any report or investigation into the accident. Keep careful records of all of your doctor’s appointments, test results, and communications with any third party—especially your employer and any insurance company—regarding your injury. Make sure communications with your employer or insurer are done in writing, with email being an acceptable option.

Can My Employer Make Me See Their Doctor?

Your company can mandate that you see their doctor for an evaluation, which is called an Employer Medical Evaluation (EME).  This is a one-time evaluation. You have a right to be treated by a doctor of your choosing, so long as you exercise that right within six months of being injured.

The EME is an opportunity for your employer and insurer to document an injury to one its covered employees. While you may not want to undergo an EME, the important thing to understand is that it may be a mandatory part of the worker’s compensation process and that you should honestly characterize your condition and symptom to the physician examining you. Exaggerating claims about your condition will not help your case and will likely come back to haunt you.

What Should You Do if You Have Been Injured in the Workplace?

If you have been injured in the workplace, you are likely trying to heal and get back on your feet, literally.  You should contact an experienced worker’s compensation attorney immediately so that he can relieve you of the stress of dealing with the legal aspects of the claim. While this is a legally complex process, it is one that can quickly compensate you for your injuries if handled correctly.

Call Barrett Law now, an experienced Mississippi worker’s compensation firm, to represent you if you are injured at work.

Barrett Law has the experience to protect your health, your livelihood, and your income.  Contact us now at (601) 790-1505, to get experienced worker’s compensation counsel on your side.

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Experienced Mississippi Personal Injury Attorney Explains: Insurance Considerations for Accidents Involving an Uber Driver

The way in which work is performed has changed. The U.S. economy has changed to a “gig economy,” where private individuals work as contractors on behalf of large corporations, often using their own equipment. In the past, individuals providing services were usually working as agents or employees of corporations, using the employers’ equipment. For a consumer, it is now unclear whose liability insurance covers you if are injured while receiving services from an independent contractor.

The prime example of the new gig economy is Uber, the ride-sharing company that allows private citizens to use their own vehicles to provide other individuals rides. The rider finds the independent Uber driver using Uber’s phone app and pays the driver through the app at the ride’s completion.

Uber provides their contractors with liability insurance, it also requires the drivers to carry their own insurance, and it is difficult to determine which policy will control when an accident occurs. If you are in an automobile accident with an Uber driver or while you are riding as a passenger with Uber driver, understanding which policy applies is an important first step.

In understanding which insurance policy applies, you must know whether the accident occurred within the scope of an accepted Uber ride or not. The question is when is an Uber driver “on the clock” or working for Uber, as opposed to just driving their private vehicle around town?

Uber’s Commercial Policy

If you formally accept a ride from an Uber driver through Uber’s app and a subsequent accident occurs during that ride, the incident is covered by Uber’s commercial insurance policy. Similarly, if a driver gets into an accident on his or her way to picking up a ride formally requested through the Uber app, Uber’s commercial policy applies.  This commercial policy covers Uber for damages or injury of up to one million dollars per incident.

In terms of insurance coverage, what happens when an Uber driver drops off his or her customer, completes that transaction, and is waiting for another ride request? What if you get into an accident with an Uber driver while he or she is not actively responding to an Uber request or transporting a passenger?

The Uber Driver’s Personal Insurance Policy

If you are in an accident with Uber driver while you are not an Uber passenger and the driver is not on his or her way to pick up an Uber passenger, his or her personal liability insurance covers the accident. Assuming that the policy is in effect, there is no way of knowing what its limits are or how extensive is the coverage it offers.

Uber’s Contingent Coverage Policy

As was stated above, normally, an Uber driver’s personal insurance policy applies in between rides. However, if a situation arises where the driver’s personal insurance policy either does cover or does not sufficiently cover harm caused by an accident, Uber has a contingency policy.  It is important to note that the contingency policy is not nearly as robust as Uber’s commercial policy. Instead, it has very low limits of $50,000 per person/$100,000 per accident with an additional up to $25,000 for property damage.

What Should You Do if You are in an Uber Accident?

If you or a loved one has been injured in a collision with an Uber driver or while a passenger with an Uber driver, receiving the compensation you are due will require consultation with an experienced personal injury attorney.

Call Barrett Law now, an experienced Mississippi personal injury law firm, to represent you if a loved one has been injured or killed as a result of an Uber accident

The seasoned Mississippi Personal Injury Attorney at Barrett Law has the experience to take on defense counsel for either the Uber driver’s insurance company or for Uber’s insurance; either will be focused on minimizing or denying you compensation for the harm you or a loved one experienced.  Contact us now at (601) 790-1505 to get experienced counsel on your side.

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Experienced Mississippi Personal Injury Attorney Explains: Pitfalls of Handling a Personal Injury Case Alone

Being injured as a result of another party’s negligence is stressful and life-altering. It can threaten your livelihood and family’s status in life. Attaining fair compensation to “make you whole” and repay the costs associated with your injury is often as stressful as the injury itself.

If you are trying to attain your compensation through an insurance company without the help of an experienced attorney, you are likely discovering a multitude of obstacles that the insurance companies routinely place in claimants’ paths to frustrate their attempt to attain fair compensation. Always keep in mind that the insurance company opposing you is not in the business of helping you; in fact, it is in the business of paying out as little as possible to you. The following are the most common obstacles injured parties encounter:

“Low Ball Offers” or “Go Away Money” Offered to Those Without a Lawyer

Insurance companies will try to scare you into not hiring counsel by saying that they will take a huge percentage of your settlement or slow down payment to you. Obviously, insurance companies have tremendous self-interest in making those sorts of claims.  In fact, when an insurance company knows that you are unrepresented, they often give you far lower settlement offers than you would receive otherwise. They have two reasons to this.  First, you have little understanding of what your case is worth, as you are inexperienced.  Second, they want you to sign a release and “go away” prior to getting the sort of legal advice that would dissuade you from taking these low dollar offers.

The Dilemma Posed By a “Small Case”

Not all claims are for millions of dollars or involve complex or extreme injuries. This may be your first claim, but it is the insurance company’s thousandth. If you have a “small claim,” insurance companies automatically know that they have an advantage. Specifically, they know that it is not financially worthwhile for you to hire an attorney, as the cost of your counsel’s work to attain fair compensation often exceeds the compensation itself.  As a result, insurance companies routinely offer low financial offers in these cases, as they know that a person coming to them will often accept the low amount rather than pay more for counsel to help them attain more.

Talking Yourself into a Corner

If a third party injures you, his or her insurance company will likely contact you soon after. These calls intentionally seek to lock you into certain statements about the severity of your injury—or lack thereof—before you fully feel your injuries’ effects. You can also inadvertently accept partial blame by responding positively to the insurance company representative’s leading questions.

We are all are of “Miranda Rights” from watching television; the police must read someone their “Miranda Warning” prior to interrogating them in a criminal case. The “Miranda Warning” starts by saying, “You have the right to remain silent.”  The problem with the insurance company representative’s contact with you is that they do not give you this sort of warning. In fact, they want you to talk so that those statements can be used against you in your subsequent claim for compensation.

It is not possible for you to understand all of your injuries soon after you are injured. In fact, many serious injuries take years to develop. Similarly, until a thorough investigation is conducted by an attorney, it is unlikely that you fully understand what caused the negligence that harmed you.

Statements made early on in a case will come back to haunt you later, once you have realized the full extent of your injuries or have more information suggesting the incident’s true cause. Rather than speak to anyone about the matter, remember that you should remain silent to avoid boxing yourself in later. 

What Should You Do if You or a Loved One is Injured?

If you or a loved one has been injured, receiving the compensation you are due will require consultation with an experienced personal injury attorney. Trying to settle the case on your own will lead to frustration and a settlement that is a fraction of what you deserve.

Call Barrett Law now, an experienced Mississippi personal injury law firm, to represent you if a loved one has been injured or killed

Barrett Law has the experience to take on insurance companies’ defense counsel.  Contact our seasoned Mississippi Personal Injury Lawyer now at (601) 790-1505 to get experienced counsel on your side.

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Experienced Mississippi Personal Injury Attorney Explains: How to Notice Nursing Home Abuse

We all care deeply for our elders and spend the money required to keep them happy and healthy in a nursing home once they become unable to care for themselves.  While many nursing homes care deeply for the clients they care for, others cut corners and provide care that is below acceptable standards. Abuse, injury, neglect, and, sometimes, death can result from a nursing home failing to meet the standard of care. Often, abuse goes unnoticed or is explained away by staff or administrators attempting to avoid blame or liability. So what are the telltale signs of abuse, and what should you do if you notice them.

Death

Obviously, if your otherwise healthy, elderly relative dies suddenly or mysteriously, he or she may have been the victim of abuse. A nursing home will be quick to label it as some other innocuous cause or simple old age. If you have any suspicion that the death was due to neglect or abuse, en engaging counsel immediately is vital.

Malnutrition

Our basic, day-to-day existence is heavily influenced by the food we eat. While it is rare that nursing homes guarantee gourmet meals, they do have a duty provide nutritious and sufficient food and hydration, some cut corners. It can be difficult to differentiate  between your loved one’s declining interest in food and malnutrition, but weight loss is an indicator that you should monitor. Is the nursing home monitoring your loved one’s weight? Is your loved one asking you to bring them food or beverages? Dramatic weight loss or a loved one that seems to never have enough food or beverages are warning signs that the nursing home is not meeting the accepted standard of care.

Unusual or Unexplained Injuries

While it is not uncommon for the elderly to lose their balance or fall, some injuries are cause of abuse. Differentiating between unavoidable accidents and abuse can be difficult. But one important consideration is that all injuries should be carefully documented, along with their ensuing care. Asking to review those records is critical to understanding their cause and to letting nursing home staff know that you are keeping a careful watch over your loved one’s care.

Bedsores

You may have placed your loved one in a nursing home because you lacked the time, strength, or skill to remove them from bed, change their bedding, and change their position each day. That is a critical, basic task for any nursing home facility, because people who lay in one position for too long develop painful bed sores. While the pain alone is problematic, the sores can go on to develop into dangerous and even deadly infections.

Dramatic Changes is Mental State

If your loved one has always had a positive, outgoing disposition and now has retreated into a constant state of depression, they may be suffering from some sort of abuse.  Similarly, if they report being treated roughly or physically disciplined by nursing home staff, this is a clear indicator that they are being abused. Follow up on any report of physical mistreatment with nursing home staff immediately.

What Should You Do if You Suspect Abuse or Neglect?

A negligence claim stemming from nursing home neglect calls for an experienced personal injury attorney.

Call Barrett Law Now!

When a loved one has been injured or killed due to ineffective or negligent nursing home care, entrusting representation to anyone less than a highly experienced personal injury attorney is a mistake. The Mississippi Personal Injury Attorney at Barrett Law has the experience to take on the nursing home’s defense counsel that is focused on denying your compensation for the harm your loved one experienced.  Contact us now at (601) 790-1505.

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Mississippi Whistleblower Lawyer Advises: The Deadlines for Successfully Prosecuting a Whistleblower Suit

Are you considering becoming a “whistleblower”?  Being a whistleblower is another term for bringing a “qui tam” claim, which is a Latin term meaning “he who sues for the king and himself.” In short, as a whistleblower in a qui tam case, you formally report government corruption for the good of society but are also making that report because you want to be paid a financial reward. To get that reward, a qui tam investigation needs to gather significant evidence that fraud has actually occurred within a specific timeframe and then report it before someone else does.

Applications of the Traditional Statute of Limitations

Generally speaking, the deadline or “statute of limitations” for filing a whistleblower case against the United States government is six years from the time of the fraud’s occurrence. It is important to note that the trigger to the statute of limitations’ commencement is the occurrence of the fraud, not when the whistleblower subsequently became aware of it. So even if you just yesterday became aware of the fraud that occurred in 2010, you are generally too late to be a whistleblower regarding that fraud today. In short, understanding when the statute of limitations begins and ends is critical to someday receiving your financial reward.

On the other hand, some courts have made various exceptions to the standard statute of limitations for government officials and/or the federal government. Specifically, if you are a government official, you may be able to report fraud if it occurred within 10 years ago, so long as you learned of it within the past three years. That means that a government official could report fraud from 2010, beyond the normal six-tyear statute of limitations, if he or she learned about it within the past three years. Some courts only extend the traditional statute of limitations to cases where the federal government joins the case or to only to the federal government itself and not the whistleblower. Obvious, the facts of your case and understanding what the courts of your jurisdiction have held is key to knowing if this exception applies to you.

“First to File” Deadline

The above discussion concerned how long a person has to file a qui tam case before the statute of limitations expires. However, there is another important time constraint that must be considered. Specifically, the federal government only pays out to a person who first files a whistleblower claim. So while you may have six years to file the claim, that long period of time will be useless to you if coworkers or other contractors are also aware of a fraud and file first. If you are aware of fraud, others are likely aware of it as well. Thus, there is a “race to the courthouse” amongst those aware of the fraud to become the “first to file,” as only the first to file is entitled to any financial reward.

Are you considering filing a qui tam suit as a whistleblower? Evidence gathering, dealing with the federal government’s attorneys, important deadlines, statutes of limitations, and filing requirements make your representation both complex and time-sensitive.  Consulting with an experienced whistleblower attorney is necessary to protect yourself, your livelihood, and your rights.

Call Barrett Law now at (601) 790-1505 if you are a whistleblower.

Being a whistleblower is a stressful process requiring experienced legal advice to protect your rights. Contact us to relieve that stress and receive the legal advice you need. Barrett Law is a Mississippi whistleblower defense firm with a track record of successfully protecting our clients’ rights in qui tam claims. Having expert legal advice by your side can mean the difference between receiving your share of a whistleblower judgment and losing your career and livelihood. Call us today at (601) 790-1505 to learn more about how Mississippi Whistleblower Lawyer Jonathan Barrett can make a difference for you.

 

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Experienced Mississippi Whistleblower Attorney Explains Proposed IRS Whistleblower Legislation

Are you considering becoming a whistleblower and exposing tax evasion? Currently, the protections for whistleblowers under the IRS Whistleblower Law are not nearly as robust as those under the traditional whistleblower laws, such as the False Claims Act or Sarbanes-Oxley.  A new law, the IRS Whistleblower Improvement Act of 2017, has been proposed by Senators Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Ron Wyden of Oregon to improve protection for whistleblowers against retaliation.

According to Senator Wyden’s press release, the goal of the new legislation is to improve communication between the IRS and whistleblowers and to protect whistleblowers from retaliation:

The IRS Whistleblower Improvements Act of 2017 is based on the Grassley-Wyden amendment included in the Taxpayer Protection Act of 2016.  The Taxpayer Protection Act, along with the Grassley-Wyden amendment, passed the Finance Committee in April 2016 but was never considered by the full Senate.

The measure would: (1) increase communication between the IRS and whistleblowers, while protecting taxpayer privacy, and (2) provide legal protections to whistleblowers from employers retaliating against them for disclosing tax abuses. 

To increase communication, the bill specifically would allow the IRS to exchange information with whistleblowers where doing so would be helpful to an investigation.  It would further require the IRS to provide status updates to whistleblowers at significant points in the review process and allow for further updates at the discretion of the IRS.  It does this while ensuring that the confidentiality of this information is maintained.  Whistleblowers have expressed concern and frustration in their inability to receive information from the IRS on the status of their cases, which may take years to resolve.  Since these individuals often put their livelihoods on the line to come forward, poor communication adds to their anxiety and is a disincentive to others with knowledge of high dollar tax fraud.

To protect whistleblowers from employer retaliation, the bill extends anti-retaliation provisions to IRS whistleblowers that are currently afforded to whistleblowers under other whistleblower laws, such as the False Claims Act and Sarbanes-Oxley.  Tax whistleblowers may be easily identified within their firms as having specific knowledge of tax fraud.

If passed, this law would likely make life easier for tax whistleblowers. Specifically, it would provide whistleblowers and independent right to sue for retaliation. While retaliation is currently prohibited, the whistleblower would have to rely on the IRS to prosecute it. That is not much of a protection, so providing the whistleblower an independent right to sue is a meaningful improvement and protection.

Second, it would allow some sharing of information between the IRS and whistleblowers.  This is a complex situation because legal prohibitions generally keep the IRS from sharing individuals’ tax information with third party whistleblowers.  But with no sharing of information, the whistleblower has no way of knowing how the case is progressing, if it is progressing at all. That can lead to a whistleblower being blindsided by retaliation or fearing for their job when, in fact, no investigation is being conducted that would jeopardize their career. This new legislation tries to find a middle ground, where whistleblowers can be given case-status information without violating any other citizen’s privacy.

What Should You Do if You Want to Become a Whistleblower to the IRS?

If you are interested in becoming a whistleblower to the IRS, you need to have experienced counsel to help you through the process. As a whistleblower, you are entitled to a share of whatever funds are recovered as a result of an investigation into the fraud you reported.  That is a powerful incentive, as is doing the right thing.  But know that this a long process and that you can experience retaliation if you are discovered.

Call Barrett Law now, an experienced Mississippi whistleblower firm, to represent you if you want to become a whistleblower

Barrett Law has the experience to protect your rights, your livelihood, and your income.  Contact us now at (601) 790-1505 to get experienced counsel on your side.

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Mississippi Trucking Lawyer Advises: Five Steps to Protect Yourself During a Trucking Accident Investigation

As a long haul trucker, you need to know what information is vital to your defense if you are involved in a serious accident involving damage, injury, or loss of life. In that sort of accident, it is vital that legal counsel be involved immediately to assure that evidence necessary to defend you legally is preserved.  Here is a list of steps to take and important evidence if you are involved in a serious accident.

Step One: Say Nothing

Make no statements until your attorney is present. While you have probably seen police dramas on television where the accused is given his or her “Miranda” warning prior to a criminal arrest, warning that “anything they say can be used against you” in court, no such warning will be given or required if you are in an accident, as it is normally not a criminal matter. Thus, your statements or efforts to help police by explaining what happened can come back to haunt you in subsequent litigation. Remember, after a significant accident, you are probably in shock and rarely truly know what caused an accident. That is not a time to be making statements.

Step Two: Getting Counsel Involved Early

For a serious accident, you will need to enlist a team to help you. A usual defense team is composed of an expert on traffic or trucking accidents, representatives from your insurer, and your attorney and his or her staff. This team needs to be on the ground and investigating within hours of the crash, if possible, and definitely no later than 24 hours after the accident.

Step Three: Documentation

One of the reasons that it important to get a team on the ground early is to accurately  and professionally document the accident. The measurements and photographs taken immediately after an accident are vital evidence in your defense. You likely lack the training and tools to document the accident in the way a court will require.  If you have been involved in an accident, you also have normal self interest in portraying the accident in a way most favorable to you, another reason why the evidence you gather is unlikely to be acceptable. Accordingly, getting a professional team on the ground to accurately collect evidence that will be used to defend you is vital.

Step Four: Safeguard your Record of Duty Log

Negligence claims against long haul drivers often revolve around claims of the drivers’ lack of sleep due to inadequate breaks or speeding. Your required “record of duty,” which documents stops, can be used as evidence of your speed between points and whether you stopped enough to prevent fatigue. This is important evidence and, by law, must be maintained for six months per the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

Step Five: Black Box Records

If your truck is outfitted with an an electronic control module, or “black box,” it has data in it that may more accurately show your driving, stopping, and resting data. Your legal counsel should have access to this data for the same reasons as explained regarding your Duty Log, above. It is potentially vital information in your defense, and can be lost if your truck is put back into service and the data on the black box is overwritten with new information.

Have you been involved in a trucking accident? Evidence gathering, dealing with opposing attorneys, important deadlines, statutes of limitations, and filing requirements make your representation both complex and time-sensitive.  Consulting with an experienced trucking attorney is necessary to protect yourself, your livelihood, and your rights.

Contact Mississippi Truck Accident Attorney Jonathan Barrett at Barrett Law immediately to protect your rights

Call attorney Barrett to set up a free initial consultation. Your trucking claims are not simple, and you should not trust them to an attorney lacking the trucking experience attorney Barrett possess. Call now at (601) 790-1505 to protect your career and family.

 

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