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Mr. Ian Garland proudly serves the people of Florida as a government lawyer.
In his current role with the Florida Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, he recovers restitution and penalties from parties who are defrauding the Florida Medicaid program, and he works with the National Association of Medicaid Fraud Control Units to shape national litigation outcomes and policy. As our Attorney General has stated, “Medicaid fraud essentially steals from Florida's taxpayers,” including our most vulnerable residents.
Earlier in his career, Mr. Garland worked with the Attorney General's Office. As an attorney in the Corrections Litigation Bureau, he represented the state in hundreds of cases, and coordinated with his colleagues to assert uniform positions and to bring state and federal law into alignment.
In addition, by giving appropriate guidance to the Department of Corrections and its employees, he helped the Department's avoid needless litigation — to the benefit of every Floridian.
Lastly, in the Child Support Enforcement Bureau, he worked to establish support for custodial parents and brought contempt proceedings against non-custodial parents for willful non-payment of support.
Mr. Garland holds himself to the highest standards of professionalism, and as a former high school teacher, he takes his role as a supervisor and mentor especially seriously. He is active in multiple voluntary bar associations around Tallahassee, and currently serves as President of the Florida Government Bar Association. He is treats people with respect, even when he is being treated disrespectfully. He follows the rules, even when doing so is not advantageous to him or his client. He leads by example and inspires everyone he works with. His civility sets him apart – a useful trait for a person who graduate from both the University of Florida and Florida State University.
In addition to his role as a public servant and professional, Mr. Garland routinely gives of himself and his time, talent, and treasure to make the community he lives in better. While active in his own church, after Hurricane Michael, he assisted in the repair of a sister church in Panama City. Often looking for creative new ways to support charitable organizations, he has inspired his peers to sponsor events such as the Legal Services of North Florida's Law Day festivities, and the Florida Bar's Sock Drive.
In sum, Mr. Ian Garland is recognized as the winner of the 2020 Claude Pepper Award, and the people of the State of Florida are better off because he has chosen to serve them.