Following our annual tradition — which started over a decade ago — we are analyzing the year's 10 most significant whistleblower and retaliation events.
As you'll see, in 2024, actions taken by a range of courts and...more
12/20/2024
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Appointments Clause ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Article III ,
Asbestos ,
Attorney-Client Privilege ,
Bribery ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Credit Reporting Agencies ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Financial Institutions ,
Healthcare ,
Incentives ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Kickbacks ,
MI Supreme Court ,
OSHA ,
Qui Tam ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Settlement ,
Statutory Requirements ,
Summary Judgment ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
The SEC recently announced the settlement of multiple enforcement actions for violations of its whistleblower protection rule, which prohibits “any action to impede an individual from communicating directly with the...more
9/12/2024
/ Cease and Desist Orders ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Confidentiality Policies ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fines ,
Investment Adviser ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Separation Agreement ,
Settlement ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
On March 7, 2024, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced that the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) is creating a pilot whistleblower rewards program, which will be developed and implemented over the next 90 days,...more
3/21/2024
/ CFTC ,
Corporate Governance ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
FEPA ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
New Regulations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes
2023 was another groundbreaking year for whistleblower litigation and bounty awards.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission shattered records by issuing a $279 million award and continued to actively enforce the...more
12/20/2023
/ CFTC ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure ,
Fraud ,
Medicare Billing Privileges ,
OSHA ,
Qui Tam ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Separation Agreement ,
United States ex rel Polansky v Executive Health Resources Inc ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
Since 2015, the SEC has brought nearly two dozen enforcement actions for violations of the whistleblower protection rules under Rule 21F-17(a) against employers for actions taken to impede reporting to the SEC. The bulk of...more
10/19/2023
/ Carve Out Provisions ,
Compliance ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Penalties ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Separation Agreement ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
As we reported here, on May 5, 2023, the SEC issued an award of $279 million to a whistleblower. This is the largest award the SEC has issued to an individual whistleblower in the history of the SEC Office of the...more
On May 5, 2023, the SEC announced an award of nearly $279 million to a whistleblower who provided the SEC with information and assistance that led to the successful enforcement of SEC and related actions. This enormous award...more
2022 saw highly impactful whistleblower and retaliation events primarily resulting from an active U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, an aggressive approach taken by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and...more
1/4/2023
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Appeals ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
NEPA ,
OSHA ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Uber ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
On November 15, 2022, the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower (OWB) released its annual report to Congress covering the period from October 1, 2021 to September 30, 2022. The report highlights a record-breaking year for the...more
On August 26, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced that it had adopted two amendments to its whistleblower program rules proposed earlier this year (see our post here).
The first amendment allows...more
On July 13, 2022, the First Circuit reversed a denial of summary judgment, finding plaintiff could not satisfy his burden of showing he engaged in protected activity under the SOX whistleblower protection provision. Baker v....more
In 2011, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission adopted Rule 21F- 17 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. It prevents companies from, among other things, using confidentiality agreements to impede whistleblowing to...more
On July 19, 2022, the SEC announced an award of more than $17 million award to a whistleblower who provided critical information and assistance to the SEC in a covered action and related action. (The order granting the award...more
On February 10, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced two proposed amendments to its whistleblower program rules.
As we previously reported, a closely divided SEC adopted a final rule implementing...more
2/17/2022
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Comment Period ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Internal Reporting ,
Proposed Amendments ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Retaliation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
2021 was another blockbuster year in the whistleblowing and retaliation arena. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Office of the Whistleblower has now issued in excess of $1 billion in whistleblower...more
1/12/2022
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Internal Reporting ,
OSHA ,
Retaliation ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Theranos ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
On November 17, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York held that a company and its CEO violated Rule 21F-17 of the Exchange Act by entering into confidentiality agreements with investors that...more
12/17/2021
/ Confidentiality Agreements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Investment ,
Investment Fraud ,
Investors ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rule 21F-17 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
2021 was a transformative year for labor and employment law and fundamental employment dynamics. There was no shortage of highly influential decisions issued by courts around the country in 2021 — and California continues to...more
12/8/2021
/ Article III ,
Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Mandates ,
Employment Litigation ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Labor Regulations ,
OSHA ,
Preemption ,
Racial Bias ,
Rest and Meal Break ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Standing ,
TransUnion LLC v Ramirez ,
Vaccinations ,
Wage and Hour ,
Whistleblowers
On November 23, 2021, the SEC issued an award of $400,000 to a whistleblower who voluntarily provided the SEC with original information that assisted the agency in bringing a successful enforcement action that resulted in the...more
On November 15, 2021, the SEC published its annual report to Congress covering the period from October 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021. The report was prepared by the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower to summarize its...more
On June 28, 2021, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California granted the Company’s Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss after an executive claimed he was discharged in violation of the Dodd-Frank...more
11/11/2021
/ Brazil ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dismissals ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Extraterritoriality Rules ,
Federal Rule 12(b)(6) ,
Government Investigations ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Internal Reporting ,
Retaliation ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Statutory Violations ,
Tax Fraud ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
On October 15, 2021, the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower announced multi-million dollar awards to two whistleblowers who provided the SEC with information that assisted the agency in bringing a successful enforcement...more
On September 24, 2021, the SEC announced an approximately $36 million award to a whistleblower who provided critical information to the SEC that contributed to a successful enforcement action. ...more
On June 23, 2021, the SEC announced that Guggenheim Securities, LLC (“Company”) agreed to settle charges that it violated Rule 21F-17 by including language in its compliance manual and training materials that allegedly...more
On July 26, 2021, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California held, after a bench trial, that Plaintiff Botta failed to prove that Defendant PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (“PwC”) terminated his...more
On July 21, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York held that the whistleblower protections established in SOX are not restricted to employee whistleblowers, but also extend to shareholders. SEC...more
8/6/2021
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Internal Investigations ,
Internet Auctions ,
Material Misrepresentation ,
Omissions ,
Rule 21F-17 ,
Sarbanes-Oxley ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Shareholders ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers