Professor of Law
Education
- J.D., The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law
- B.S., Minnesota State University, magna cum laude
Areas of Interest/Teaching
Civil Procedure, Conflicts of Law, Pretrial Discovery, Lawyering Skills
Current & Past Experience
- Member of the State Bar of the District of Columbia
- Admitted to practice in Maryland, the District of Columbia, the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Federal Claims, and the United States Tax Court
- Trial Attorney with the Civil Fraud Section of the United States Department of Justice in Washington, D.C.
- Had nationwide responsibility for litigating significant False Claims Act cases, including fraud against Medicare and the military, and overseeing the qui tam whistleblower reward program
- Led numerous fraud investigations affecting twenty different federal agencies
- Associate attorney for Howrey, Simon, Arnold & White in Washington, D.C.
Publishing Experience
- Whistleblowing: A Guide to Government Reward Programs
- Reward, Your Complete Guide to the IRS Whistleblower Reward Program
- Authored dozens of articles for publications and a law review article, which was cited five times in a brief before the Supreme Court, proposing guidelines for the courts to follow in such cases
Biography
Joel D. Hesch is a leading national expert in the area of fraud against the government and whistleblower reward programs.  For over fifteen years, Hesch served as a Trial Attorney with the Civil Fraud Section of the United States Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. While at the Department of Justice, he led numerous fraud investigations affecting twenty different federal agencies. One of these False Claims Act cases settled for $641 million, and the combined recoveries for all of the cases on which he worked exceeded $1 billion and paid out more than $250 million in whistleblower rewards. For his efforts, he received several awards, including a Special Commendation Award for outstanding service, a Meritorious Award, and twice a Special Achievement Award for sustained and superior performance of duty in combating fraud.
Prior to joining the Department of Justice, Hesch worked for two years as an associate attorney with the law firm of Howrey, Simon, Arnold & White, in Washington, D.C. During law school, he received two American Jurisprudence book awards for the highest score in a first-year course and graduated fifth in his class. He also participated in the D.C. Law Students in Court program, interned with the Army JAG Corp in Frankfurt, West Germany, and was a member of the Journal of Contemporary Health Law and Policy.
Hesch traveled to India four times on short term mission trips to impoverished rural villages to help build a medical clinic, community center, water well, and playground.