Sanctions Imposed For Failure to Meet Ethical Standards for Use of Privileged Documents
Relators and their counsel are increasingly being held accountable for the misuse of qui tam defendants’ confidential and privileged documents in connection with lawsuits alleging violations of the False Claims Act (“FCA”). In a new Health Care Enforcement Defense Group Advisory, Health Care Section Of Counsel Ellyn Sternfield and I discuss the recent decision in United States ex rel. Jerre Frazier v. IASIS Healthcare Corporation (U.S. District Court, District of Arizona), which provides insight into the ethical pitfalls and adverse consequences attorneys may encounter if they do not take precautionary steps to avoid impermissible use of, or exposure to, privileged communications.