Grant & Eisenhofer Adds False Claims Whistleblowers Practice

WASHINGTON, Mar. 18 /PRNewswire/ --

WASHINGTON, March 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading securities and corporate governance law firm Grant & Eisenhofer P.A., is adding False Claims Act qui tam whistleblowers and complex worker class action litigation to its existing practice areas.

At the same time, the firm announced the opening of a Washington, DC office with the addition of two DC-based attorneys, Reuben A. Guttman and Ann Lugbill, who bring extensive experience representing whistleblowers and workers in False Claims matters. Mr. Guttman and Ms. Lugbill, who have practiced together for a number of years, have recovered more than $500 million for clients under the federal False Claims Act.

Mr. Guttman joins Grant & Eisenhofer as senior counsel, Ms. Lugbill as of counsel. Mr. Guttman previously practiced with Milberg Weiss until 2006 and before was also a partner with the firm Wolf Haldenstein. He and Ms. Lugbill have collaborated on whistleblower and other cases for a decade and now have the opportunity to work at the same firm representing clients.

Whistleblower and False Claims Act litigation marks a natural expansion of Grant & Eisenhofer's longtime focus of representing investors in securities and corporate governance litigation. Through litigation under various federal and state "False Claims Acts," whistleblowers can step into the shoes of government enforcers and initiate civil litigation targeted to recover dollars from government contractors or those doing business with the government.

Cases under these statutes have successfully been brought against a broad range of defendants, including large pharmaceutical companies whose off label marketing has wrongfully caused the expenditure of federal and state Medicare and Medicaid dollars; defense contactors that have over-billed the government for products; and other entities that have made false representations causing the government to spend money where it would not have done so.

Mr. Guttman and Ms. Lugbill also bring expertise in litigation under federal employment laws, including wage-and-hour class actions on behalf of workers who have been denied overtime compensation or who have not been properly compensated for every hour worked under state and federal fair labor standards laws.

"We are fortunate in launching a False Claims and employment practice to do so with the addition of Reuben Guttman and Ann Lugbill, who have successfully litigated in these fields for many years and across numerous industry sectors, achieving tremendous results for clients, especially in cases involving government and corporate whistleblowers," said Grant & Eisenhofer managing partner Jay Eisenhofer.

"The cases handled nationally by Reuben and Ann on behalf of employees and government workers in correcting abuses in government contracts, drug sales, employment practices and other areas fits seamlessly with our historic representation of investors in corporate governance and securities fraud matters," Mr. Eisenhofer added.

"We're also pleased to add a Washington, DC address to our national offices in New York and Delaware," he noted.

For more information about Federal and State False Claims Acts, Grant & Eisenhofer is hosting a website originally created by Mr. Guttman and Ms. Lugbill called www.whistleblowerlaws.com. The site provides comprehensive information to whistleblowers, the media, academics and attorneys seeking experienced co-counsel and large firm resources to help them represent their False Claims Act qui tam whistleblower clients.

Note: Grant & Eisenhofer P.A. represents institutional investors and shareholders internationally in securities class actions, corporate governance actions and derivative litigation. The firm has recovered nearly $10 billion for shareholders in the last five years and was named one of the Top 5 firms for shareholder recovery by Institutional Shareholder Services as well as to the National Law Journal's list of Top Ten Plaintiffs' firms for the past three years. For more information, visit www.gelaw.com.

Ivan Alexander 212-262-7470 ialexandernyc@aol.com

Allan Ripp 212-721-7468 arippnyc@aol.com