News & Analysis as of

Confidentiality Agreements Employment Contract Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)

Perkins Coie

Whistleblower Protection Remains SEC Priority

Perkins Coie on

Last week, the SEC announced settled charges against seven public companies for use of agreements that the SEC alleges have provisions that violate the whistleblower protection rule. Coincidentally, I recently recorded a...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

SEC Takes on Nondisclosure Agreements to Protect Whistleblower Program; Fines Firm $10 Million

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in recent years has taken an aggressive stance against employers over employment agreements that the agency believes impede its whistleblower program—as highlighted by a $10...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

SEC Continues to Police Confidentiality Provisions for Theoretical Whistleblower Suppression

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) levied an $18 million fine against J.P. Morgan Securities, LLC (“JPMS”) for allegedly including overbroad release provisions in settlement agreements. This marks the continuation...more

White & Case LLP

How to Avoid Risk of SEC Whistleblower Rule Violations in Connection with Settlement Agreement Confidentiality Provisions

White & Case LLP on

In March 2023, we published an alert concerning the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") whistleblower protection rule and how to minimize the risk of violations in connection with employee-related documents.1 Last...more

BakerHostetler

Employers Beware: Broad Confidentiality and Severance Clauses May Violate Whistleblower Protection Laws

BakerHostetler on

Employers should check their confidentiality and severance agreements for a common oversight that, for some, is becoming a costly error. Recent enforcement activity by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Rule...more

Akerman LLP - HR Defense

Jingle All the Way to the SEC: Employers (Even Privately Held) Under Scrutiny for Language in Separation Agreements Impeding SEC...

While jingle bells have only just begun to ring, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforcement bells have been ringing steadily throughout year. In recent months, the SEC announced significant settlements with...more

Womble Bond Dickinson

Recent Whistleblower Enforcement Actions Highlight SEC Focus On Employee Agreements

Womble Bond Dickinson on

In September, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced the settlement of three enforcement actions for violations of SEC whistleblower protection laws. In the actions, the SEC asserted that the...more

Sherman & Howard L.L.C.

The SEC Blows the Whistle on Improper Confidentiality Provisions

On Friday, September 29, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued a cease and desist and $10 million civil money penalty against D.E. Shaw & Co, L.P. (“DESCO”). DESCO is a registered investment advisor...more

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive...

[Podcast]: Key Contractual Provisions for Employers to Incorporate in Documents with Confidentiality Covenants

In this episode of The Proskauer Brief, Kate Napalkova, special employee benefits and executive compensation counsel, and associate Oleg Zakatov discuss potential pitfalls that lurk in employment agreements and other employee...more

Proskauer - Law and the Workplace

Proskauer Delivers Webinar on Settling Employment Claims

On December 12, Proskauer partners Allan Bloom, Elise Bloom, and Harris Mufson delivered a webinar focused on how recent developments in the law impact the ground rules and key strategies for settlement in four distinct areas...more

Proskauer - Whistleblower Defense

California District Court Addresses Whistleblower’s Self-Help

In Erhart v. BofI Holding, Inc., Case No. 15-cv-02287, (S.D. Cal. Feb. 14, 2017), a bank’s internal auditor reported alleged misconduct to federal agencies, engaged in self-help discovery by appropriating the bank’s...more

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP

SEC Continues Crackdown on Employer Whistleblower Restrictions

Takeaways: - SEC is targeting contract terms that appear to restrict contact with the SEC or require employee whistleblowers to waive monetary recoveries. - Express disclosure of these rights in severance...more

Snell & Wilmer

The SEC Continues to Impose Fines and Other Penalties on Companies Based Solely on the Content of Their Standard Corporate...

Snell & Wilmer on

In August 2016, we highlighted that companies may want to review the content of their standard severance agreements, settlement agreements, confidentiality agreements and similar documents in light of an unprecedented...more

Carlton Fields

The Chill is Gone: SEC Wants Unfettered Whistleblowers

Carlton Fields on

The SEC continues its efforts to support whistleblowers. The whistleblower program promulgated by the Commission under the Dodd-Frank Act offers rewards to individuals who report securities law violations. As we have...more

Foley & Lardner LLP

Is It Time to Switch Gears? Enforceability of Automotive Company Employee Confidentiality Restrictions

Foley & Lardner LLP on

Given the large workforces and importance of intellectual property and trade secrets in the automotive industry, automotive companies rely heavily on confidentiality provisions in employment agreements and employee handbooks....more

Foley & Lardner LLP

SEC Blows the Whistle on Confidentiality Agreements

Foley & Lardner LLP on

Thanks to a recent enforcement action brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), it may be time to review and revise the confidentiality provisions in employment agreements, severance agreements, employee...more

Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP

SEC Cracks Down On Employment Agreements That Stifle Corporate Whistleblowers

On April 1, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) gave a boost to corporate whistleblowers, reaching its first settlement with a company accused of stifling whistleblowing activity through the use of...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

SEC Investigating Companies’ Employment Contracts That Restrict Whistleblowing

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may soon be investigating the agreements companies make with their employees. According to a February 25, 2015 Wall Street Journal report, the SEC has sent requests to several...more

NAVEX

SEC’s 2014 Report on Dodd-Frank Whistleblowing Program: Key Takeaways and Trends Companies Should Expect for 2015

NAVEX on

On November 17, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission issued its 2014 Annual Report to Congress on the Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Program and it is clear that the program is going strong. Following are six key takeaways...more

Proskauer - Whistleblower Defense

Watchdogs Petition SEC to Strengthen Prohibitions Against Impeding Complaints to SEC

On July 18, 2014, a coalition of plaintiff-side lawyers and government watchdog groups proposed ways to strengthen the SEC whistleblower program in two petitions filed with the SEC. The groups urged the SEC to update Rule...more

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