November 21, 2022
Last week, our co-founder Suzanne Durrell was honored as a Top Women of Law. The Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly bestows this award annually to recognize women lawyers who are pioneers, educators, trailblazers, and role models. Ms. Durrell joined an exceptional group of honorees selected by a panel comprised of members of the legal community and representatives of Lawyers Weekly.
The judges chose to honor individuals who have made significant contributions to the legal profession while also serving as role models for women entering the law.
-Susan A. Bocamazo, Esq., Publisher, Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly
Ms. Durrell was chosen for her achievements in the False Claims Act qui tam arena. She previously served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney and as Deputy Chief, and then Chief, Civil Division, U. S. Attorney’s Office, Boston. In that role, she supervised and prosecuted qui tam and False Claims Act cases from 1989 to 2002. In 2003, she began representing whistleblowers in False Claim Act cases and has continued to do so to this day.
Over the course of her more than 40-year career, Suzanne E. Durrell has made a name for herself as one of the nation’s leading whistleblower attorneys, recovering billions for the government.
–Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly
Ms. Durrell’s legal acumen while with the Department of Justice and then in private practice representing whistleblowers has helped return billions of dollars to the public fisc. Her work has stopped fraudsters who abused the public trust and rewarded whistleblowers for their bravery. Honored and humbled to receive the award, she reflected that:
My favorite part of the job is helping the client while also helping the government and taxpayers. We have people coming to us who are very distressed and in some of the hardest situations of their lives. I like seeing them through that.
–Suzanne E. Durrell
Kimberly L. Driscoll, a trailblazer and role model in her own right, shared her perspectives with the attendees. This month, she was elected Lieutenant Governor. Her running mate Maura Healey became the first woman elected as Governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Together, they will be the first all-woman executive team in the history of the Commonwealth. Placing the significance of the recent election into historical context, Ms. Driscoll hailed Massachusetts as “the birthplace of this nation” and “the birthplace of so many firsts.”
Lt. Governor-Elect Driscoll also recounted her journey as a woman lawyer. Early in her career, during the 1990’s, she served as Chief Legal Counsel and then as Deputy City Manager for the City of Chelsea, Massachusetts. Since 2006, she has served as Mayor of Salem, Massachusetts. Currently, she is heading up the transition for the Governor-elect. She and Maura Healey will take office on January 5, 2023.
The Whistleblower Law Collaborative LLC, based in Boston, devotes its practice entirely to representing clients nationwide in bringing actions under the federal and state False Claims Acts and other whistleblower programs. Under the False Claims Act, a private citizen (known as a “relator”) who suspects or knows of fraud against the government can act as a whistleblower and file a sealed complaint on behalf of the government.
For more information, contact the Whistleblower Law Collaborative LLC at 617.366.2800.