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Overview

A seasoned litigator, Jody is passionate about advocating for healthcare clients who face enforcement and compliance issues – both in and out of the courtroom.

Jody has assisted clients across a wide range of industries at investigations, negotiations, mediations, pretrial matters, grand jury proceedings, civil lawsuits, criminal indictments, jury trials, sentencings and appeals. She has tried dozens of jury and bench trials in the federal and state courts, argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court. Her experience of more than 20 years includes representing clients in all phases of litigation. She focuses primarily on healthcare issues such as:

  • Fraud and abuse
  • False Claims Act
  • Enforcement
  • Kickbacks
  • Telemedicine
  • Opioid litigation
  • Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)
  • Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
  • Billing and benefits

Clients appreciate Jody’s deep background on all sides of government compliance and criminal and civil litigation. Although most of her career has been spent in private practice, she has also served as a federal prosecutor for the Northern District of Texas and was appointed by the Texas Attorney General to spearhead high-profile charitable trust and healthcare litigation matters for the State of Texas. She has established excellent working relationships with many civil Assistant U.S. Attorneys in the Northern and Eastern Districts of Texas who handle qui tam matters, as well as DOJ lawyers around the country. Jody values applying her broad experience and passionate advocacy to clients both in and out of the courtroom, knowing that proactive and cost-effective compliance measures are often the best defense.

Jody serves as the Office Managing Partner for Husch Blackwell's Austin office and leads the firm's White Collar, Internal Investigations & Compliance practice group. She also spearheads the firm’s False Claims Act working group.

Industries

Services

Recognition

  • Chambers USA, Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations, 2024
  • D Magazine, Best Lawyers Under 40, 2002
  • Federal Bureau of Investigation, Certificate of Recognition for Excellence
  • State of Texas, Certificate of Appreciation for Outstanding Service
  • American Institute of Personal Injury Attorneys (AIPIA), 10 Best, 2015-2017

Education

  • J.D., University of Chicago Law School
  • B.S., Northwestern University

Admissions

  • Illinois
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois
  • Texas
  • U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas
  • U.S. District Court, District of Colorado
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Federal Claims
  • U.S. Supreme Court

Professional Memberships and Certifications

  • State Bar of Texas
  • Dallas Bar Association
  • Austin Bar Association
  • Travis County Women Lawyers Association (TCWLA)
  • Texas Health Lawyers Association
  • Dallas Bar, Health Law Section, Director at Large, 2017-2018; Secretary, 2019
  • National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Lifetime Member
  • Austin Healthcare Council, 2019
  • Women’s White Collar Defense Association, Programming Committee, 2019

Languages

  • Spanish, proficient
  • Russian, proficient
  • French, proficient
Experience

Qui Tam Matters

  • Represented numerous qui tam relators in filed but sealed whistleblower lawsuits.
  • Represented defendants and targets in federal investigations who were also under qui tam investigation. Successfully negotiated stays of civil discovery and civil litigation pending outcome of criminal investigations in order to preserve and protect Fifth Amendment privileges.
  • Represented qui tam defendants during Civil Investigative Demand (CID) and other civil investigative processes. Successfully narrowed scope of discovery and demanded documents, negotiated and addressed privilege issues, and worked through production protocols.
  • Negotiated resolution to qui tam matter under investigation that resulted in small money judgment pre-suit.

Other Experience

  • Briefed and argued before U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on behalf of physician convicted of healthcare fraud involving Medicare certifications for home health.
  • Represented defendant who was indicted in health care fraud and conspiracy case. Successfully obtained acquittal on conspiracy and other counts after 3-week jury trial in Northern District of Texas.
  • Represented defendant who was indicted in multimillion dollar money laundering conspiracy. Successfully obtained sentence of probation.
  • Represented defendant before U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in computer hacking case. After grant of certiorari, briefed and appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court.
  • Obtained complete pretrial dismissal of federal fraud case indicted by grand jury and set for trial.
  • Obtained non-prosecution of federal health care fraud matter on behalf of provider accused of Medicare billing fraud.
  • Tried several-week jury trial on behalf of physician in opioid case alleging conspiracy to distribute opioids illegally.
  • Represented critical third-party witness during U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation, and proceedings by court-appointed receiver.
  • Represented plaintiff class representatives and secured appointment as lead class counsel in federal class action alleging substantive due process violations in connection with imposition and collection of fines and fees for tolls.
  • Represented physician and his company in ongoing litigation matters and billing disputes arising from commercial payors' refusals to pay claims for new services not captured by existing billing codes.
  • Represented numerous providers in insurance company audits and clawbacks.
  • Represented physicians before Texas Medical Board.
  • Negotiated resolution of health care kickback case and civil False Claims Act case.
  • Represented numerous witnesses and targets in grand jury and government investigations, and relators in False Claims Act cases.
  • Handled Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) claims and ERISA litigation on claimant and defense side.
  • Briefed and argued injunction to enjoin merger to two insurance company giants on behalf of the State of Texas.
Legal Updates | April 21, 2023
DOJ Updates FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy

With its updated guidance, the Department of Justice has further incentivized disclosure of FCPA misconduct and full and willing cooperation with an investigation.

Outside the Office

Lights, camera, action.

When not practicing law, Jody has worked as a professional actress. She has shot many commercials and industrial films, and hosted a 26-episode television program. Amused that she was never once cast as an attorney, Jody has played a cardiologist 14 times. Some of her trials were filmed for the documentary television series “The First 48.” In Jody’s most interesting showbiz twist, a film is being developed about a client she represented on charges of money laundering – Jody hopes to play herself.