If you have gained access to damaging or even incriminating information about an individual, corporation, or other entity, you may have the opportunity to become a whistleblower. Taking such action in the public interest is risky, but also incredibly important. It can even lead to a substantial financial reward for bringing the information to light.

The best way to maximize your odds of success is to hire a whistleblower lawyer based in a New York office who has knowledge of the federal False Claims Act and experience handling similar cases. Here are four things to keep in mind when looking for the right one for your case.

1. Get One That Is Familiar With Your Industry and The Federal False Claims Act

Perhaps the most important thing to keep in mind when selecting a New York whistleblower attorney is that you would do best with a lawyer who is familiar with your industry. There are numerous different types of whistleblower cases, and each whistleblower lawyer will focus their practice on one of them, or a couple at most, based on their areas of expertise and state whistleblower laws.

For example, while one whistleblower lawyer may take cases that are based on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, others will take cases that allege environmental violations. Getting a lawyer who regularly handles cases with similarities to your own is extremely important. If you hire one who does not have much experience in your field, the legal and practical advice that they will give you may be out of touch.

2. An Agency Insider Can Help Your Case and Investigation

When you conduct your preliminary investigation, you typically act with the intent of gathering evidence of misconduct to present it to a federal law enforcement agency and persuade them to take the case over. Which law enforcement agency hears your case will depend on the nature of the whistleblower claim. For example:

· Allegations of tax fraud are typically heard by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)

· Healthcare fraud cases often go before the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) or the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-OIG) first

· Securities or investor fraud cases are handled by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Lots of New York whistleblower attorneys will have spent time in one of these agencies handling whistleblower claims on behalf of the government before leaving the agency to represent the whistleblowers, themselves–therefore understanding whistleblower protection laws like the Sarbanes-Oxley Act or the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act.

If you can find an experienced whistleblower attorney to represent you who has prior experience in the federal agency that would hear your case to decide whether to intervene in it or not, that can be a huge advantage for several reasons:

· Your lawyer may have an internal reputation for excellence or may even still know some of the decision-makers in the agency. That name recognition can put your case in a good light before it even comes in the door.

· Your attorney will understand what evidence the agency is likely to find persuasive. This can help them assemble a convincing presentation and can also expedite your preliminary investigation, as your lawyer will know what facts to look for.

3. Bigger Law Firms Have the Resources to Both Start and Finish Your Case

The biggest juncture in a whistleblower case is when you and your lawyer present your findings to the relevant federal law enforcement agency or federal court and urge them to take the case over. If they agree to do so, you and your legal team will take a backseat to the agency’s investigation team. While you may still be called upon to provide some information, the agency’s investigators and prosecutors will do most of the heavy lifting.

However, federal agents can decline to get involved in your case. If they sit your case out, you are still free to move it forward on your own. However, you will have to do so without the help of a major federal agency providing much of the leg work. Instead, it will just be you and your legal team – just like it was during the preliminary investigation that brought your case to the point where it could be presented to the law enforcement agency.

The amount of time and resources that whistleblower cases consume from this point onward can be difficult to understate, particularly when they involve complicated and nuanced factual circumstances. Not only will you need a law firm on your side that has the personnel to conduct a full investigation; you will need a law firm that can do this while covering the expenses of the case, and all without making any money off of it until the end.

Most small whistleblower law firms prove to be unable to do this. Many of them only agree to represent whistleblowers up until the point the federal agency issues its decision about whether to intervene or not. If the agency declines, these firms drop the case, leaving you to find another firm if you want to move it forward.

Having a big law firm from the start can help you avoid this awkward and difficult position.

4. The Fee and Expense Agreement

Generally, whistleblower lawyers and their law firms will represent their clients on a contingency fee basis and will cover the expenses of the litigation. This means two things:

1. The whistleblower does not pay for his or her attorneys’ fees upfront – instead, they come out of any winnings that the case recovers, if any

2. The law firm pays for the case’s expenses, often recouping them from the case’s proceeds

As Dr. Nick Oberheiden, whistleblower lawyer and founding partner of the national law firm Oberheiden P.C., tells potential clients, “If a law firm does not agree to cover the costs of the litigation, it should raise concerns about their financial health and invoke serious doubts about whether they are serious about representing your entire case – not just taking it to the federal agency and no further. Whistleblower cases can become quite expensive, and passing those expenses on to the whistleblower is often seen as unprofessional. As for attorneys’ fees, the trend in the industry is to charge a contingency fee. If a law firm is demanding its fees upfront, it can be an indication that they do not think that you have a winning claim.”