A compliance consultant was instructed that they should ensure that prior to their conducting practice audits for health care professionals that their client retain legal counsel and that the audit be performed ‘only’ under the direction and supervision of the client’s attorney.


This requirement of clients allows 1) the provider client a level of protection from outside investigative entities demanding the consultant’s audit report should they learn of the audit, and 2) the provider client to obtain the audit report from their counsel after counsel had the opportunity to review the audit findings to provide legal advice on how to respond to (substantiated) misconduct identified.


Unfortunately, the consultant did not follow the instructions and conducted practice audits for providers not represented by counsel, and this consultant found themselves in federal court, relevant to one particular client, faced with demands by federal law enforcers for the ‘unprotected’ audit report.