One of the big concerns corporate counsel voiced in the latest Fulbright & Jaworski Litigation Trends report is an increase in litigation initiated by whistleblowers. New provisions in the Dodd-Frank Act, in combination with recently-renewed Justice Department interest in False Claims Act litigation, can only mean more qui tam cases for businesses to worry about.
And now defendants can add another qui tam wrinkle to their list of fears: On Tuesday, the Texas branch of AARP announced that it was entering a Dallas qui tam case as co-counsel for the plaintiff, Kevin Colquitt, a former Guidant sales representative who’s now a lawyer at Baron & Budd. AARP lawyers Kelly Bagby and Stacy Canan will join Colquitt’s counsel from Baron & Budd and Stein, Mitchell & Muse in prosecuting Colquitt’s federal district court case against Abbott Laboratories, Cordis, and Boston Scientific. [Hat tip: Pharmalot.]
