Blowing the whistle on perceived misconduct is one of the most important public services that you can do in Texas. When you use your access to information to bring wrongful or even criminal conduct to light, you can protect the public, hold the perpetrators accountable, and even deter future wrongdoing by providing an example of the repercussions that it can lead to.

However, whistleblowing comes at great personal risk. The best way to both protect yourself and ensure that your claims gain as much traction as possible is to hire a whistleblower attorney. Finding the best one for your needs can be tricky, though.

Here are some things to keep in mind as you look for one in Texas.

Get a Whistleblowing Lawyer With Experience in Your Field

Not all whistleblowing cases are the same. Depending on the subject matter at issue, the Texas and federal laws ( and the government agency that will investigate your claim may change.

The best whistleblower lawyer for your needs is one with deep experience handling cases similar to your own and one familiar with the federal False Claims Act and the Whistleblower Protection Act.

For example, blowing the whistle on securities violations can implicate one or several federal securities laws and will likely get reviewed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). But blowing the whistle on misconduct in the healthcare field can trigger several healthcare fraud laws or the False Claims Act (31 U.S.C. §3729 et seq.), and can get reviewed by one of several federal agencies, from the Office of Inspector General for Department of Health and Human Services (OIG-HHS) to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).

If you hire a whistleblower lawyer but they have not handled a whistleblower or False Claims Act case with similar factual circumstances or the same subject matter as your own, any prior experience that Austin whistleblower lawyers have will not be as meaningful as it could be.

Prior Experience in the Relevant Federal Agency is a Huge Plus

In many cases, the goal of initiating a whistleblower claim is to convince the relevant government agency to intervene on your behalf. If the government chooses to intervene, they will handle the investigation and pursue the case. This is a huge development, as it gives your claim access to the resources of the federal government, which can make a huge difference in both the case’s progress and its outcome.

However, convincing law enforcement to take your case over is not always easy, particularly when the allegations you are making are important, but not the sort of thing that will generate national news coverage. You need to make it clear to them that it is in the public interest for them to take part in your case.

One of the best ways to do this is with the advice of a whistleblower lawyer who has been in the government agency that is hearing your case. That inside knowledge of how the agency works and which cases it will likely find attractive can drastically increase the odds that the agency will intervene.

Your Lawyer Needs to Take Action to Protect Your Rights

An experienced whistleblower attorney will not just help you gather evidence to support your claim and advocate for your case; they will also help you invoke your rights and protect your interests in the workplace, as well. It is not unheard of for whistleblowers to face whistleblower retaliation in the workplace for their conduct, especially if the case evolves to the point where their employer learns of the pending investigation.

This development is not unforeseeable, and a good whistleblower attorney will prepare for it and protect whistleblowers.

The good news is that many of the laws that provide avenues for whistleblowers to bring their evidence to government officials also provide those whistleblowers with legal protections from retaliatory conduct in the workplace. If you blow the whistle on wrongful conduct and then face an adverse employment action, you may have legal recourse and your whistleblower lawyer should help you pursue it.

A Law Office in Texas and Washington, D.C., is a Nice Perk

Many whistleblower laws are federal. This means they are enforced by the federal government, which has its headquarters in and around Washington, D.C. While many major federal executive agencies have branches across the country – for example, the SEC has eleven regional offices, including one in Fort Worth – it is not uncommon for whistleblower claims to pass through the capital at some point or another.

Because of this, it can help to hire a whistleblower lawyer from a law firm that has both a local office and a law office in the District of Columbia. This way, you can get the local representation that you need and also have access to whistleblower lawyers who have personal connections to the law enforcement agency that you want to intervene on your case.

You Need a Law Firm With the Resources to Take Your Case to the End

While a chief goal of filing a whistleblower claim is to convince the government to intervene, the reality is that it is common for the federal agency to decline to do so. If this happens in your case, you will have to make a difficult decision: Whether to continue to pursue the claim without the help of federal investigators or to give up.

For many whistleblowers, giving up is not an option – not after spending so much time and energy gathering evidence to support their case and putting so much on the line to do so. However, moving forward with the claim without the help of the government is no easy task. Continuing the investigation will require lots of manpower and resources.

As Dr. Nick Oberheiden, founding partner of the whistleblower law firm Oberheiden P.C., often notes, “Many whistleblowers who hire small or boutique law firms to handle their case find themselves in a bind if their attempt to convince the government to intervene in their case fails. They are then stuck with a small firm of only a few whistleblower attorneys to move their case forward.”

The goal is to get federal law enforcement to take the case over. However, whistleblowers would do well to prepare for the possibility that they will have to see it through to the end, themselves. Hiring a firm large enough to do that effectively can make a huge difference.