Oct 16, 2023 | Government Contract
On October 12, 2023, the Georgia Court of Appeals dismissed and denied the appeals of companies seeking review of decisions denying them a medical cannabis production license. The appeals concerned a procedural question only and did not address the substantive...
Oct 12, 2023 | Government Affairs, Government Investigations
On October 11, 2023, the Supreme Court of Georgia denied the Georgia First Amendment Foundation (GFAF)’s petition for writ of certiorari, which sought to have the Court unseal records concerning Georgia’s application process for awarding licenses to companies...
Oct 11, 2023 | White Collar Crime
The DOJ just announced that Lourdes Navarro pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit health care fraud and wire fraud. Navarro now faces up to 20 years in prison for her role in a $359 million scheme the Government alleges exploited the COVID-19 pandemic. According to...
Oct 11, 2023 | Government Investigations
Use of telemedicine and telehealth services skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic. At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) temporarily waived some requirements that providers must typically follow to bill for...
Oct 10, 2023 | False Claims Act, White Collar Crime
COVID relief fund fraud has been a focus of the Department of Justice since the various programs’ inception. Since the CARES Act was signed into law, CG attorneys have warned about heightened enforcement efforts. CG attorneys wrote about the increased risk of...
Oct 3, 2023 | Government Contract
Following the Georgia Court of Appeals’ recent reversal of the $6 million verdict against the City of Brookhaven, its Mayor, and City Manager earlier this year as described in this blog post, the trial court judge recently ordered a new trial of the case. As...
Oct 3, 2023 | Government Contract
In an important step for easing access to banking, insurance, and other financial services for businesses in the cannabis industry, on September 27, the U.S. Senate Banking Committee passed The Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act with a 14-9...
Sep 26, 2023 | Criminal Matters
On September 25, 2023, the Department of Justice announced Armando Herrera, of Miami, Florida, entered a guilty plea involving a conspiracy case related to the introduction of adulterated and misbranded drugs into interstate commerce. According to official court...
Sep 26, 2023 | Fraud Investigations
The DOJ just announced that an Atlanta federal jury has found Jack Fisher and James Sinnott guilty for their roles in what the IRS has dubbed one of the “worst tax scams.” The duo was convicted of conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to commit wire...
Sep 26, 2023 | State Bar of Georgia Investigations
For anyone reading this who might not already be familiar with COAMs, they are “coin-operated amusement machines” that, along with Georgia’s lottery, are excused from Georgia’s gambling prohibitions. The COAM industry, however, is highly regulated. To own or operate...
