Co-Chair of the firm’s Appellate and Supreme Court Practice Annie Kastanek and outside Co-Counsel Stephen Lee, were named Litigator of the Week Runners-Up by The American Lawyer for their victory in United States v. Sorensen.
In an important decision, the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit took the rare step of overturning a defendant’s conviction under the Anti-Kickback Statute, establishing important new boundaries for the statute’s application to healthcare advertising and marketing. This victory is particularly noteworthy given the rarity of overturning criminal convictions at the appellate level.
This case is the Seventh Circuit’s first comprehensive examination of how the statute applies to advertising and marketing arrangements in the healthcare sector.
The case presented complex questions about the boundaries of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and its expanded use by DOJ to prosecute payments to marketing and advertising agencies as so-called “kickbacks.” DOJ’s legal theory has been used to prosecute numerous cases in the past decade.
Annie and Stephen successfully persuaded the Court to adopt a narrower and more precise interpretation of the law that prevents prosecutorial overreach while still preserving the statute’s core purpose.
Related Lawyers
Related Capabilities
Related Locations
© 2026 Jenner & Block LLP. Attorney Advertising. Jenner & Block LLP is an Illinois Limited Liability Partnership including professional corporations. This publication, presentation, or event is not intended to provide legal advice but to provide information on legal matters and/or firm news of interest to our clients and colleagues. Readers or attendees should seek specific legal advice before taking any action with respect to matters mentioned in this publication or at this event. The attorney responsible for this communication is Brent E. Kidwell, Jenner & Block LLP, 353 N. Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60654-3456. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome. Jenner & Block London LLP, an affiliate of Jenner & Block LLP, is a limited liability partnership established under the laws of the State of Delaware, USA and is authorised and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority with SRA number 615729. Information regarding the data we collect and the rights you have over your data can be found in our Privacy Notice. For further inquiries, please contact dataprotection@jenner.com.