Ryan Hassanein is a partner in the Litigation Department of Morrison & Foerster’s San Francisco office. He is a member of the firm’s Commercial Litigation group, as well as its Securities Litigation, Enforcement, and White-Collar Defense group. His practice focuses on healthcare fraud litigation and investigations, including False Claims Act suits initiated by qui tam “whistleblowers,” the Department of Justice, and state Attorneys General. Mr. Hassanein also represents clients in securities and consumer class actions, civil RICO cases, shareholder derivative actions, domestic and international arbitration proceedings, and SEC investigations and enforcement proceedings. His experience crosses a wide range of industries, including pharmaceuticals, software, computer hardware, telecommunications, and financial services.
Mr. Hassanein received a B.A. degree in Philosophy from Colgate University in 1998. He received his J.D., magna cum laude, from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 2002, where he served as Senior Editor of the Hastings Law Journal. While at Hastings, Mr. Hassanein externed for the Honorable Joseph C. Spero, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of California, and the Honorable Janice R. Brown, while she was an Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court.
Mr. Hassanein is admitted to practice in California, the U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Central, Southern and Eastern Districts of California, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Representative Matters
False Claims Act Litigation
- Representing a national pharmaceutical wholesaler in a series of False Claims Act investigations and suits concerning alleged pharmaceutical pricing fraud on federal and state healthcare programs.
- Represented a national pharmaceutical wholesaler and obtained an early dismissal for the client in a qui tam suit alleging violations of the False Claims Act predicated on violations of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and pharmaceutical pricing fraud.
Internal Investigations
- Represented a network of cancer clinics in an internal investigation regarding alleged Medicare fraud and prompted by a "whistleblower" complaint to the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
- Represented the Audit Committee of a telecommunications equipment maker in an internal investigation concerning alleged insider trading, improper revenue recognition, and understated reserves for excess and obsolete inventories.
Securities Litigation & SEC Investigations
- Represented JDS Uniphase in the largest securities class action ever tried to verdict in the United States. Plaintiffs sought damages in excess of $20 billion, but after a four week trial and two days of deliberation, the jury returned a unanimous verdict on behalf of JDSU and four of its former executives.
- Represented an asset manager of two off-shore hedge funds in a series of formal SEC investigations, and related administrative proceedings.
Arbitration Proceedings
- Representing a healthcare technology company in an international arbitration proceeding before the International Chamber of Commerce ("ICC").
- Representing an online travel tour company in an arbitration proceeding before the American Arbitration Association ("AAA").