Before joining Calcagni & Kanefsky, Walter was a Partner with a preeminent national firm where, in addition to his white collar criminal defense and complex commercial litigation practice, he also drafted and negotiated international IT outsourcing agreements, business process outsourcing agreements, software licenses, development and escrow agreements, and other IT and internet-related contracts.

Walter began his legal career as the judicial clerk to Judge Stephen Skillman, Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division.

Criminal and Regulatory Defense

• Achieved pre-trial dismissal of criminal Sherman Act indictment against senior executive of water chemical company who was alleged to have participated in a multiyear bid rigging, market allocation, and price fixing conspiracy. Representation of senior executive includes defense in related civil federal MDL cases and state qui tam matters.
• Successfully defended a senior financial executive in a five-week criminal trial of fraud charges brought by the Department of Justice – Antitrust Division concerning the reinvestment of municipal bond proceeds. Successfully obtained the dismissal of the indictment on appeal.
• Successfully defended the Chief Medical Officer of a large New York healthcare network in a federal kickback investigation conducted by the FBI, HHS, and U.S. Attorney’s Office. Investigation closed with no further enforcement action.
• Favorably resolved criminal Sherman Act allegations against a Senior Vice President of Sales of a multi-national packaged seafood company in an investigation by the Department of Justice – Antitrust Division.
• Defended an orthopedic hip and knee implant manufacturer in an industry-wide investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office into alleged Anti-Kickback and False Claims Act violations arising out of the company’s consulting arrangements with healthcare providers. Defense of the government investigation favorably concluded with the negotiation of a Deferred Prosecution Agreement.
• Represented of an orthopedic implant manufacturer in the successful implementation of a Deferred Prosecution Agreement under oversight of the U.S. Attorney’s Office and a Federal Monitor.
• Represented employees of a multinational generic-drug manufacturer under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division, for price collusion.
• Defended pharmaceutical company in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office into alleged violations of the Anti-Kickback Statute through the claimed manipulation of the spread between AWP and WAC.
• Represented a regional sales manager in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts, into the alleged off-label promotion of Bextra, resulting in the negotiation of a favorable plea agreement.
• Defended a senior executive in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, into the alleged off-label promotion of Risperdal.
• Represented a senior executive in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of California, into the alleged off-label promotion of Natrecor.
• Represented a regional sales manager in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of New York, into the alleged off-label promotion of Xibrom.
• Represented an employee in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, into alleged good manufacturing practice violations and related recall issues.
• Defended an executive of a pharmacy benefit manager in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Delaware, into an alleged conspiracy between the PBM and a pharmaceutical company client to circumvent best price rules.
• Represented several related pharmaceutical companies in an investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office into destruction practices for expired and non-conforming pharmaceutical products.
• Defended an orthopedic surgeon in connection with a criminal complaint for allegedly accepting payments from an imaging/diagnostic company in exchange for referrals.

Internal Investigations and Legal Compliance

• Conducted a nationwide internal investigation and integrity audit for a global commercial real estate brokerage faced with multiple government investigations into certain company practices across multiple business lines, and working closely with in-house counsel on developing and implementing a comprehensive compliance program.
• Discretely conducted more than 25 nationwide internal investigations for corporate and governmental clients, including investigations of alleged reportable events under corporate integrity agreements, employee misconduct, intellectual property theft, conflicts of interest, workplace harassment, improper sales practices, and other legal and ethical violations.
• Performed an internal investigation for New Jersey Transit to evaluate its Super Bowl rail service performance. Investigatory report publicly available at http://www.njtransit.com/AdminTemp/SuperBowl_Report.pdf.
• Performed internal investigations for the New York State Executive Chamber into employment complaints.
• Performed a comprehensive healthcare compliance audit of a 5,400-employee hospital system in southern New Jersey.
• Coordinated the development and implementation of an Anti-Money Laundering and Anti-Bribery and Corruption compliance program for international celebrity jeweler.
• Coordinated the development and implementation of surgeon consultant compliance program for multi-national orthopedic device manufacturer.

Litigation

• Defended a retired head of research of a publicly traded company in federal putative class action litigation regarding the alleged fraudulent concealment of asbestos in the company’s products for over 30 years. Obtained voluntary dismissal of complaint after extensive motion and appellate practice.
• Argued appeal before the New Jersey Supreme Court regarding the appellate process for orders compelling arbitration. GMAC v. Pittella, 205 N.J. 572 (2011).
• Defended a multi-national, Fortune 50 corporation facing multiple civil lawsuits and government investigations related to the sale and marketing of prescription opioids.
• Represented multiple health care practices during insurance audits, which includes helping clients respond to information requests, navigate complex billing issues, contest audit findings, and negotiate favorable resolutions with insurance company investigators and legal counsel.
• Represented clients accused of insurance fraud in investigations conducted by insurance companies, the Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor, and other governmental agencies.
• Represented a dietary supplement manufacturer in challenge of FDA final rule declaring dietary supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids adulterated.
• Represented founding partner of a law firm in connection with a law firm separation.
• Successfully defended oppressed minority shareholder claims against majority shareholders in closely held corporations.

An author of academic writing, Walter has written several published articles:
• “Towards a Unified Approach on Protection of Genetic Information,” The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel (March 2003).
• “Key Strategies for Successful Intellectual Property Management,” The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel (February 2003).
• “The Impact of Canadian Privacy Legislation on US Organizations,” The Computer & Internet Lawyer (June 2001).