Law 360: Former Prosecutor ‘Coming Back Home’ To NJ Boutique
July 30, 2024
Law360 — After prosecuting federal healthcare crimes in New Jersey, a former assistant U.S. attorney has returned to boutique firm Calcagni & Kanefsky LLP to guide clients as part of the firm’s white collar criminal and regulatory defense and investigations practice with a focus on healthcare litigation and licensing, the firm announced Tuesday.
Ray Mateo has returned to the firm as a partner after previously working there for three years, first as a senior associate and then as counsel, according to his LinkedIn profile. After most recently serving as a federal prosecutor for nearly six years in Newark, Mateo is focusing on healthcare litigation and licensing within the practice.
“I’m excited about the work that I’ll do here,” Mateo told Law360 Pulse on Tuesday. “I’m honored to be able to return and contribute to the legacy of excellence that this firm has had for quite sometime. Not to get emotional, but it feels like I’m coming back home to something.”
He said he explored other private practice possibilities, but it was a no-brainer for him to return to [sic] Calcagni & Kanefsky.
“In thinking about what does life look like outside of the Department of Justice for me and what does that transition look like, I wanted to be able to go to a place where I know that you have individuals who are top-rated lawyers and high-stakes matters and they have some fun in the process,” Mateo said.
Mateo said when he previously worked at Calcagni & Kanefsky, he admired the attorneys for the quality of work they were producing and realized he wanted to follow in their footsteps and become a federal prosecutor.
“I was always curious, ‘Where did they get their training from?'” Mateo said. “And that was a U.S. Attorney’s office, so I’ve always said, ‘That’s a place where I got to go and get my training.'”
As a federal prosecutor, Mateo led the office’s opioid abuse prevention and enforcement task force, the firm said. He has handled cases involving Medicaid and Medicare fraud, anti-kickback schemes, bank fraud, wire fraud and money laundering. While at the DOJ, Mateo worked alongside federal agencies such as the FBI, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and others.
He mostly handled cases against a medical practice, individual doctors and telemedicine companies, Mateo said, and he developed skills of building an investigation and understanding the priorities and strategy from the U.S. Department of Justice.
“Now that I’ve built this expertise, I feel the transition now to representing clients is to help guide them and navigate them through that process,” Mateo said. “I think that’s what is of value when you have a company or individual that you’re representing, you want someone on the other side who has some insight, who’s going to be able to understand and guide you through whatever the process might be that you’re facing, whether that’s civil, regulatory or at worst it can be criminal.”
Mateo said he plans on being a dependable partner who will hold the government accountable and ensure that all standards of proof are met throughout the process.
Mateo said he also understands that his work has an effect on real people, so he plans on using his experience as a federal prosecutor to benefit clients now.
“Being able to bring that knowledge and frankly having bedside manner — you understand that your client is going through probably one of the most difficult times in their life — I think that’s what I bring in,” Mateo said. “It’s not just the expertise, but also the human aspect of this where you’re able to explain it to your client and you’re able to put yourself in the client’s shoes for them to understand that you’re actually going to go through this with them as well.”
Mateo said his experience at the DOJ working under U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger and previous U.S. Attorneys Craig Carpenito and Rachael Honig, who served as acting U.S. attorney, was “completely invaluable.”
“It was righteous work,” Mateo said. “They’re incredibly complex cases to deal with. I will forever be indebted to Craig Carpenito, Rachael Honig, as well as Philip Sellinger for not only giving me the opportunity, but entrusting me that I was going to do the job and that I was going to do it well. There was a lot of faith that they had to take on their end. I feel very grateful for the opportunity.”
Mateo also previously served as deputy attorney general for New Jersey’s Office of the Attorney General for more than four years, according to his LinkedIn profile. He also served as an associate at Wilens & Baker PC and as a law clerk for Judge Ronald D. Wigler in the Criminal Division of Essex County Superior Court.
Thomas R. Calcagni, senior name partner and co-founder of Calcagni & Kanefsky, said in a statement that Mateo is a close friend as well as an “extraordinary lawyer whose return couldn’t come at a better time.”
“With law enforcement’s increasing scrutiny of billing and prescribing practices of doctors, dentists, and other healthcare providers, we’re more and more called upon to vigorously defend our healthcare clients and protect their licenses,” Calcagni said. “Ray has both the federal and state prosecutorial experience to contribute immediately to those important representations.”
Eric T. Kanefsky, senior name partner and co-founder, said in a statement that he thinks Mateo will benefit the firm and its clients.
“His deep government experience as both a former assistant U.S. attorney and New Jersey deputy attorney general boosts our already-strong team of former federal and state prosecutors,” said Kanefsky. “And the hard work and care he brings to every engagement is emblematic of the extraordinary effort and attention our clients rightfully expect.”
Mateo earned his bachelor’s degree from Binghamton University and his law degree from Rutgers Law School. Calcagni & Kanefsky has about 20 attorneys and offices in New Jersey and New York, according to its website.
By Emily Johnson
–Editing by Stephen Berg
Article source here: Law360