Former Supreme Court of Hawaii Clerk Paul Strickland advises clients in the areas of government investigations, audits, business litigation, and blockchain technologies.

Federal Civil & Criminal Litigation. Mr. Strickland has represented clients in a variety of civil and criminal federal litigation matters. In his civil practice, Mr. Strickland has worked on a broad range of civil disputes involving breach of contract, tortious interference, business disparagement, defamation, fraud, asset forfeiture, Fair Labor Standards Act violations, insurance coverage, and qui tam suits. He has represented clients from various industries such as healthcare, industrial manufacturing, import-export, finance, and technology. He has experience both defending and prosecuting business disputes in federal court. On the criminal side, Mr. Strickland primarily represents businesses and individuals in connection with financial and other white collar criminal investigations. He has advised individuals and companies that were under investigation for various reasons, including healthcare fraud, tax evasion, Anti-Kickback Statute violations, False Claims Act violations, insider trading, business fraud, and Medicare/Medicaid fraud. In addition to his work as a litigator, Mr. Strickland helps clients navigate investigations by numerous federal agencies such as the DOJ, OIG, SEC, FTC, DEA, IRS, and CFPB. He also assists clients that have received federal subpoenas for testimony or the production of documents.

SEC Matters. Mr. Strickland is well-versed in SEC matters and has defended clients under civil or criminal investigation against SEC subpoenas, enforcement actions, and parallel U.S. Department of Justice proceedings. He has represented CEOs, directors, board members, owners, and other executives in multiple insider trading matters. He has defended clients against alleged violations of the Securities Act of 1933, the Exchange Act of 1934, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, and other general allegations of securities fraud. He also advises clients on how to comply with SEC regulations on investment and financial advice, securities offerings and registration, and cryptocurrencies.

FTC Matters. Mr. Strickland has substantial experience defending clients in investigations or lawsuits brought by the Federal Trade Commission. These cases usually involve allegations of deceptive advertising, consumer fraud, violations of the FTC’s Telemarketing Sales Rule, and others. Last year, Mr. Strickland successfully defended a case in which the FTC filed a lawsuit against a client alleging over $7,000,000 dollars in damages. He was able to resolve the case without an admission of guilt and without a significant financial penalty. In addition to defending clients after litigation has been initiated, Mr. Strickland assists clients in responding to civil investigative demands from the FTC and advises clients on how to proactively comply with FTC regulations on deceptive or unfair advertising.

Healthcare Audits and Investigations. Mr. Strickland has significant experience advising clients in the healthcare industry. His clients include doctors, dentists, laboratories, pharmacies, medical supply companies, DME suppliers, hospice facilities, registered nurses, emergency medical service providers, and others. He regularly assists his clients in responding to audits by federal healthcare programs such as Medicare, Medicaid, TRICARE, and the federal Workers Compensation Program, as well as audits by private insurers. In many cases where the insurer has concluded that an overpayment occurred, Mr. Strickland has successfully appealed the determination and reduced or eliminated the overpayment demand. He also defends clients against investigations by the Department of Justice into alleged violations of the False Claims Act, the Federal Anti-Kickback Statute, Stark Law, the CARES Act, the Civil Money Penalties Law, and other federal regulations. In addition to defending his clients against alleged civil violations, Mr. Strickland has substantial experience defending against allegations of criminal healthcare fraud.

Tokenization & Blockchain. Mr. Strickland co-authors one of the leading introductions into blockchain, tokenization, smart contracts, and cryptocurrency. He assists clients in navigating this unprecedented area of the law and advises on the potential application of the tax code and SEC regulations to blockchain-related businesses and cryptocurrency transactions. Mr. Strickland provides advice on reporting obligations, structuring of coin or token offering, and the application of federal securities law.  He also advises clients on how developments in blockchain technology may proactively be used to streamline business processes and advises on how those developments may impact clients’ industries in the future. Additionally, he uses his knowledge of blockchain and cryptocurrency to defend against federal criminal investigations that concern cryptocurrency-related securities fraud and other blockchain-based fraud cases.

Other Federal Matters. In addition to the work described above, Mr. Strickland has helped clients navigate investigations by numerous federal agencies, such as the IRS, DOL, FDA, CFPB, and DEA. In his IRS practice, he has defended clients who are being investigated for both civil and criminal violations of the tax code, and he has substantial experience defending against allegations of tax evasion and failure to pay a tax. In addition, he advises clients on tax compliance relating to securities and investment, particularly with respect to cryptocurrency and blockchain-related income or transactions.  Mr. Strickland has represented clients in multiple cases concerning the federal labor laws, including the Fair Labor Standards Act. He has successfully defended clients who were being investigated by the Department of Labor for alleged violations of the federal minimum wage law and other provisions of the FLSA. He is well-versed in the requirements of the FLSA, as well as its exceptions, and assists clients in ensuring that they are compliant with its provisions. Mr. Strickland has successfully defended clients from investigations by the DEA and CFPB, and advises clients on their compliance with a number of federal statutes and regulations such as the Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, the Military Lending Act, and others. Mr. Strickland also assists healthcare professionals in investigations and license revocation proceedings by the DEA.

Education & Accolades. Mr. Strickland graduated cum laude from the University of California, Irvine School of Law. In addition to serving the UC Irvine Law Review and the UCI Journal of International, Transnational, and Comparative Law, Mr. Strickland received several awards for his outstanding academic performance. Mr. Strickland is a former clerk to the Honorable Justice Richard W. Pollack of the Supreme Court of the State of Hawaii. He is licensed to practice law in California as well as before various federal courts.