J. Robert Liset

Bob Liset is of counsel with the Healthcare Practice Group at the Firm's Los Angeles office. He received his A.B. Degree from Georgetown University in 1967 and his J.D. Degree from the Georgetown University Law Center in 1970. He is admitted to practice in California, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Mr. Liset's primary practice is in the areas of medical staff, administrative litigation, litigation, fraud and abuse, corporate compliance (including HIPAA), licensing, EMTALA investigations, Medicare decertification and bioethics. Over the past couple of years, he has broadened his healthcare/litigation practice and has had excellent results in Federal and state court cases involving the California anti-SLAPP statute (Code of Civil Procedure, Section 425.6), RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations), a multi-million dollar hospital claims dispute arbitration against a health maintenance organization and represented UCI Medical Center in the liver organ transplant scandal. For over ten (10) years, Mr. Liset has represented all the private trauma centers in their trauma contract negotiations with the County of Los Angeles.

Prior to entering private law practice in 1977, Mr. Liset was a Federal prosecutor with the United States Department of Justice (Criminal Division), where he served as Special Attorney assigned to the Los Angeles Organized Crime and Racketeering Section. The Los Angeles Strike Force was responsible for the Federal effort against organized crime in the Southwestern United States. In his practice, he has placed a particular emphasis on preventing fraud and abuse, defending clients who are the target of False Claims Act criminal and civil investigations; developing and implementing corporate compliance programs for healthcare systems, hospitals and medical groups; conducting internal corporate compliance investigations and, where required, making voluntary disclosures to the appropriate government agencies; defending against qui tam private plaintiff lawsuits; and responding to and defending against CMS and OIG investigations into compliance issues involving Medicare Risk Plans and subcontracted medical groups.

For many years, a significant portion of Mr. Liset's practice has been concentrated on representing medical staffs, medical groups and health plans in credentialing and disciplinary matters, including representation of those entities at fair hearings and subsequent appellate reviews (both intra-organizational appeals and writs of mandate).

On the regulatory side, he has represented providers in Medicare/Medi-Cal reimbursement cases, Department of Health Services; licensing investigations, EMTALA investigations, as well as responding to attempts by CMS to decertify hospitals because of alleged failures to comply with the Medicare Conditions of Participation. For a number of years, Mr. Liset has served pro bono on a number of hospital Ethics Committees and has provided legal advice to clients on a wide range of ethical issues, ranging from withholding or withdrawing treatment, organ donation and transplantation, experimental treatment and genetic testing. These issues have moral and legal dimensions, which may involve, among other things, patient autonomy, informed consent, competence, healthcare provider rights of conscience, medical futility, resource allocation and surrogate decision making.

He has spoken to healthcare groups on a number of topics, including: fraud and abuse; corporate compliance; EMTALA investigations, medical staff disciplinary investigations and hearings; antitrust issues; economic credentialing; sexual harassment and healthcare policy. He was a member of the Board of Directors of Facey Medical Foundation for fourteen (14) years, and is the Chair of the Georgetown Southern California Law Alumni Counsel. For a number of years, he was a member of the Georgetown Law Alumni Board of Directors (currently an Emeritus Member), a member of the Board of Directors of UniHealth, CareAmerica, California Hospital Medical Center and Quest Insurance Co., Ltd. From 1979 to 1985, he was a lecturer at the UCLA Graduate School of Public Health. Mr. Liset is Martindale-Hubbell AV Peer Review Rated.

Admissions & Associations

State Bar of California

State Bar of Virginia

District of Columbia Bar