In May 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit relied on the “heightened materiality standard” endorsed by the U.S. Supreme Court in its 2016 Escobar decision in dismissing a False Claims Act (FCA) whistleblower suit filed against pharmaceutical giant Genentech related to its billion dollar cancer drug Avastin. In Escobar, the Supreme Court upheld the validity—“at least in some circumstances”—of the “implied false certification” theory of FCA liability, and provided that this theory can attach where at least two conditions are met: a defendant must (1) make a specific representation on a claim for payment to the government, and (2) fail to disclose noncompliance with a material requirement for payment, which failure renders that representation a “misleading half-truth” (even if the representation is true on its face).
Continue Reading Third Circuit Recognizes Escobar “Heightened Materiality Standard” in Dismissal of False Claims Act Case Tied to Avastin
Third Circuit
Third Circuit Holds that Medical Resident Can Bring Title IX Claim Against Private Teaching Hospital
By Kathleen Dion on
In Doe v. Mercy Catholic Med. Ctr., No. 16-1247 (March 7, 2015), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held that a private teaching hospital operating a residency program can be held liable under Title IX for sex discrimination.
The plaintiff was a resident in Mercy’s accredited diagnostic radiology residency program, which is affiliated with Drexel University’s College of Medicine. She claimed that the director of Mercy’s residency program sexually harassed her, and that the harassment interfered with her medical training. The plaintiff also claimed that after she reported the director’s conduct to the human resources department, the director and other Mercy representatives subjected to her retaliatory behavior that eventually resulted in her dismissal from the program. The plaintiff filed suit against Mercy alleging, among other things, quid pro quo sexual harassment, hostile environment sexual harassment, and retaliation in violation of Title IX.
Continue Reading Third Circuit Holds that Medical Resident Can Bring Title IX Claim Against Private Teaching Hospital