Maria E. Gonzalez Knavel is a partner with Foley & Lardner LLP. A member of the firm's Health Care and Life Sciences Industry Teams and Government Enforcement, Compliance & White Collar Defense Practice, she counsels health care clients on compliance issues, corporate matters and general operational issues of health care entities (including providers and medical device manufacturers), and Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement. Prior to entering law school, she managed a medical clinic for 12 years.
Ms. Gonzalez Knavel’s professional activities include national speaking engagements on a diversity of topics, including health care fraud, critical compliance issues and voluntary disclosure, as well as presentations to hospital and health care associations such as "Physician Contracting and Affiliations under Stark II" and "Tailoring the OIG Compliance Plan to Your Physician Practice." She also has been quoted in national health publications, including the Health Care Program Compliance Guide, Health Care Fraud Report, and Physician Practice Compliance Report.
Ms. Gonzalez Knavel is a graduate of Marquette University School of Law (J.D., 1993), where she was a member of the Marquette Law Review, and Pennsylvania State University (B.S., with distinction, 1976). Admitted to the Wisconsin State Bar in 1993, she is a member of the American Bar Association, the Association for Women Lawyers, and the American Health Lawyers Association where she is on the Diversity Council. She has been invited to serve as a commissioner on the 2012-2013 HNBA Standing Commission on the Status of Latinas in the Legal Profession. Ms. Gonzalez Knavel also is a board member of the Zoological Society of Milwaukee County.
She is the recipient of the 2010 Association of Women Lawyers (AWL) Community Involvement Award. This honor recognizes an attorney who demonstrates significant involvement in organizations committed to strengthening and improving the quality of life for those in Milwaukee and Southeast Wisconsin. Ms. Gonzalez Knavel has also been selected by her peers for inclusion in the 2009-2013 editions of The Best Lawyers in America® in the area of health care law. In recognition of her experience, Ms. Gonzalez Knavel has been Peer Review Rated as AV® Preeminent™, the highest performance rating in Martindale-Hubbell's peer review rating system.
Born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Ms. Gonzalez Knavel has maintained her Spanish fluency.