Paul B. Murphy

• Represented high-ranking elected state official in highly publicized public corruption investigation by U.S. Attorney’s Office and FBI.
• Represented chief executive officer of aircraft services corporation in investigation by U.S. Attorney’s Office and EPA into alleged violations of the Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
• Represented chief executive officer of global pharmaceutical and medical device company in investigation by U.S. Attorney’s Office, National Security Division of U.S. Department of Justice, and U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Controls regarding alleged shipments into embargoed foreign countries.
• Represented Medicare Administrative Contractor in civil investigation by U.S. Attorney’s Office, Civil Division of U.S. Department of Justice, HHS-OIG, and FBI stemming from multiple qui tam complaints focusing on a variety of issues, including the alleged failure to properly enroll Medicare providers.
• Represented large multi-hospital health system in civil investigation by U.S. Attorney’s Office, HHS-OIG, and state Attorney General’s Office prompted by multiple qui tam complaints alleging inappropriate admission and outlier charging practices.
• Represented publicly held chemical manufacturer in criminal investigation by U.S. Attorney’s Office, the Environmental Crimes Section at Department of Justice, and EPA into alleged violations of the Clean Water Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
• Represented academic medical center in criminal and civil investigations by U.S. Attorney’s Office, HHS-OIG, and FBI related to alleged anti-kickback statute and Stark violations.
• Represented national nursing home chain in civil investigation by U.S. Attorney’s Office, HHS-OIG, FBI, and state Attorney General’s Office arising from qui tam complaint alleging various quality of care issues.
• Represented large publicly held manufacturing company in internal investigation and self-disclosure of potential Bank Secrecy Act violations.
• Retained by publicly held dialysis provider to assume representation of company in reopened discovery phase of the largest non-intervened qui tam case under the False Claims Act related to alleged overbilling of intravenous drugs reimbursed by Medicare.
• Retained by board of directors of publicly held agricultural corporation to provide advice on all legal matters in the wake of highly publicized refinery explosion that spawned lengthy investigation by the OSHA, shareholder litigation, and multiple wrongful death and personal injury cases.
• Represented publicly held home health care company in civil investigation conducted by U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Division, eight U.S. Attorney’s Offices, HHS-OIG, and FBI stemming from multiple qui tam complaints related to patient eligibility and medically necessity.
• Represented publicly held medical device manufacturer in civil and criminal investigations conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil and Criminal Divisions, multiple U.S. Attorney’s Offices, VA-OIG, and FDA stemming from qui tam complaints alleging non-conforming product under the FDCA.
• Retained by audit committee of board of directors of publicly held biomedical company to conduct independent investigation into allegations related to improper revenue recognition practices and other accounting irregularities.
• Represented Fortune 500 food, energy, and transportation company in criminal and civil investigations by U.S. Attorney’s Office, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department of Labor, HHS-OIG, and state Attorney General’s Office into alleged health care fraud and immigration worksite enforcement violations.

Paul Murphy focuses on white-collar criminal defense, investigations and litigation under the False Claims Act, corporate internal investigations, corporate governance and compliance, and national security matters. Paul has held several leadership roles with the Department of Justice, including the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia and the FBI Chief of Staff. A partner in our Special Matters and Government Investigations practice, Paul represents and advises corporations, boards of directors and board committees as well as executives and other individuals.

With more than 30 years of experience, Paul helps clients navigate their most challenging and sensitive legal situations. Paul has represented numerous clients over the years facing potential exposure on multiple fronts, including federal criminal investigations accompanied by parallel civil, regulatory, or state investigations and related shareholder or other litigation. Paul brings a strategic and integrated approach to these multifaceted legal risks, taking into account both the immediate and longer-term issues confronting the client. Chambers USA has described Paul as “a go-to person for difficult cases.” 

Paul has represented a wide variety of clients facing high-profile government investigations. He has deep experience with health care fraud investigations, having represented clients across the health care and life sciences sector: hospital systems, pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, pharmacy providers, dialysis providers, home health care companies, skilled nursing facility chains, and health insurers. Paul also has handled several criminal environmental investigations, including some of the most significant enforcement matters pursued by the Justice Department. In addition, he is experienced with alleged immigration offenses, customs and trade-related violations, tax offenses, securities and bank fraud, violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and public corruption.

Paul also has served as independent counsel to public company boards and board committees, conducting investigations into accounting or disclosure-related allegations or other issues that may implicate senior management. In these matters, as well as others, he routinely advises clients on prospective solutions, including compliance program enhancements or other preventative measures designed to minimize the likelihood of recurrence and the possibility of future enforcement actions. 

As the Chief of Staff at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Paul was the primary advisor to FBI Director Christopher Wray and worked closely with him and the senior leadership of the Department of Justice on criminal, national security, and operational issues. Earlier in his career, Paul served in several other Department of Justice positions. He was the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia, and before that, he worked in Washington, D.C. as Associate Deputy Attorney General and later Chief of Staff to then-Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson. While on the Deputy Attorney General’s staff, he oversaw the Department’s criminal and civil health care fraud enforcement program and was the principal policy liaison to the Department of Health and Human Services on enforcement matters. Paul also previously served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, receiving commendations for his work as a prosecutor from the Attorney General, the FBI, and other federal law enforcement agencies.

In addition to Chambers USA, Paul has been recognized as a leading white-collar criminal defense attorney by several other publications, including The Best Lawyers in America and Who’s Who Legal: Business Crime Defense. He is a frequent speaker and author on topics related to government investigations and prosecutions.