Blog | Chilivis Cochran Larkins & Bever

Highlights from Protenus’ 2022 Breach Barometer Report

Mar 16, 2022 | Data Breach, Health Care

Protenus, a healthcare compliance analytics company that offers privacy monitoring and drug diversion surveillance technology, has become a reliable source for healthcare and privacy professionals. Since 2016, Protenus has published an annual report, the “Breach...

Potentially Discriminatory Voting Districts to Remain in Effect for the 2022 Elections

Mar 16, 2022 | Election Law

Around the country, state legislatures have been crafting new voting maps following release of the 2020 Census data to recalibrate districts with the appropriate number or proportion of residents for each district. Many newly created maps were swiftly challenged by...

Notable Changes to Georgia Campaign Finance and Ethics Laws Take Effect

Mar 16, 2022 | Election Law

In March, the Georgia General Assembly passed and Governor Kemp signed into law Senate Bill (SB) 120, titled the “Ethics in Government Act of 2021.” This bill ushered in a number of meaningful changes and additions to the campaign finance and ethics laws already in...

DOJ Names Chief Prosecutor for Pandemic Relief Fund Fraud

Mar 10, 2022 | COVID-19 Related Law, Fraud Investigations, White Collar Crime

On March 10, the Department of Justice announced the appointment of a chief prosecutor to oversee enforcement efforts stemming from fraud against COVID-19 pandemic relief funds. Associate Deputy Attorney General Kevin Chambers has been named the Director for COVID-19...

OCR Director Encourages Enterprise-Wide Risk Analysis and Stronger Cyber Posture for Covered Entities and Business Associates

Mar 9, 2022 | HIPAA

On February 28, 2022, the Director of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights, Lisa Pino, published a blog post titled “Improving the Cybersecurity Posture of Healthcare in 2022.” Ms. Pino’s blog post was a call to action, encouraging...

Florida Tax Preparers Sentenced to Prison for Fraud Scheme

Mar 9, 2022 | Fraud Investigations

On March 4, 2022, the Department of Justice announced the sentencing of two Florida tax preparers. Nikency Alexis, the owner and operator of Unity Tax & Financial Services, a Broward County tax preparation business, was sentenced to 45 months in prison, and Thony...

Another Conviction: COVID-19 Relief Fund Enforcement Efforts Continues

Feb 28, 2022 | White Collar Crime

Since 2020, Chilivis Grubman attorneys have monitored and written about indictments, guilty verdicts, and prison sentences related to COVID-19 relief programs. In September 2020, CG attorneys wrote about then Attorney General Bill Barr’s instruction to the DOJ to...

Individual Government Officials Can Be Held Civilly Liable by Private Citizens for Violations of the Georgia Open Records Act

Feb 28, 2022 | Government Affairs

The Georgia Open Records Act (ORA) gives individuals and entities the right to obtain records from their state and local governments. The government officials receiving requests for records generally must provide the requested records within three days. Failure to...

Georgia Supreme Court Caps City Liability in Automobile Accidents Even if City Has Insurance Coverage Above the Cap

Feb 22, 2022 | General

Last week, the Georgia Supreme Court issued a decision ruling that the extent of a city’s liability for a motor vehicle collision was $700,000, the statutory limit of liability for a Georgia municipality when two or more people die or are injured in single incident,...

Three Men Sentenced to Prison for $2.7 Million COVID-19 Relief Fraud Scheme

Feb 22, 2022 | White Collar Crime

The Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the sentencing of three men in the Middle District of North Carolina for fraudulently seeking over $2.7 million in Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDLs) guaranteed by the Small...