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Internal Investigations Whistleblowers Confidentiality Agreements

Polsinelli

Protected Activity or Terminable Misconduct? — Government Contractor Update

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It has become almost routine for employees pursuing whistleblower and other employment-related claims against their employer to engage in "self-help discovery," using their access to files and databases to collect and gather,...more

Thomas Fox - Compliance Evangelist

Tribute to Picasso: Phases of a Whistleblower Program

Just as Picasso had several phases of his career, the lifecycle of the Goldman Sachs internal whistleblower program may be getting ready to have more phases....more

Carlton Fields

The Chill is Gone: SEC Wants Unfettered Whistleblowers

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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

Fenwick & West LLP

“You Know How to Whistle Don’t You?”—Whistleblowers Gain Even More Protection

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The SEC recently issued guidance specifying that whistleblowers do not first have to take their concerns to the SEC in order to be covered by the SEC’s anti-retaliation rule. The guidance clarifies that those whistleblowers...more

Fenwick & West LLP

Securities Litigation and Enforcement Newsletter

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A CD or not a CD, That is the Question… That the Auditors Should Have Answered - A headline-grabbing SEC enforcement action last week against BDO USA and several of its national partners may lead audit firms to insist on...more

Foley & Lardner LLP

A Review of Recent Whistleblower Developments

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SEC Awards Another Whistleblowing Compliance Officer - On April 22, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced an award between $1.4 and $1.6 million to a compliance officer who provided information...more

Thomas Fox - Compliance Evangelist

King Arthur Week – The Green Knight and the Protection of Whistleblowers – Part IV

We continue our King Arthur themed week with an exploration of one of the most interesting characters in the Arthur canon, The Green Knight, so called because his skin and clothes are green. The meaning of his greenness has...more

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

SEC Joins Agency Attack on Confidentiality Clauses in Employee-Related Agreements and Policies

In a recent enforcement action, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) took action against a company for "using improperly restrictive language in confidentiality agreements with the potential to stifle the...more

Franczek P.C.

Confidentiality Clauses Under Increasing Scrutiny by Federal Agencies

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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has become the latest federal agency to challenge the legality of employee confidentiality requirements. Earlier this month, the SEC instituted its first administrative proceeding...more

Epstein Becker & Green

SEC Enforcement Gives Employers a Strong Incentive to Clarify That Their Confidentiality Agreements Do Not Preclude Reporting...

Epstein Becker & Green on

The Securities and Exchange Commission? (“SEC”) has resolved its first enforcement action regarding a potentially overreaching confidentiality agreement following the “voluntary” revision of the agreement to state that it...more

Blank Rome LLP

Beware of Confidentiality Agreements with Employees; Make Sure They Don’t Stifle Whistleblowing

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On April 1, 2015, the SEC announced its first enforcement action against a company for utilizing language in a confidentiality agreement which could discourage whistleblowing....more

Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP

SEC Takes Aggressive Approach to Fortify Dodd-Frank’s Whistleblower Rules

On April 1, 2015, the Securities & Exchange Commission (the “SEC” or “Commission”) fined a public company $130,000 for requiring employees involved in internal investigations to sign a confidentiality agreement that the...more

Epstein Becker & Green

Five Key Issues Confronting Financial Services Industry Employers

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Employers in the financial services industry are faced with a growing number of employment law challenges. Whistleblower complaints are on the rise as regulatory agencies become more aggressive in their efforts to encourage...more

Goodwin

SEC Applies Whistleblower Protections to Confidentiality Arrangements

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Public companies should review their confidentiality arrangements for any provisions that may result in unintended violations of the Dodd-Frank Act’s whistleblower protections....more

Foley & Lardner LLP

SEC Blows the Whistle on Confidentiality Agreements

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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

Brooks Pierce

Three Thoughts about the SEC’s First “Pretaliation” Case

Brooks Pierce on

I was on a flight last Wednesday when the SEC released the first of what whistleblower chief Sean McKessy has dubbed “pretaliation” cases against KBR, Inc. When I landed I had several emails from colleagues, asking, “Did you...more

Benesch

The SEC is Taking a Closer Look at Confidentiality Agreements to Ensure Potential Whistleblowers Not Restrained

Benesch on

The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced on April 1, 2015 that it was instituting enforcement proceedings relating to the whistleblower provisions of the 2010 Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer...more

Locke Lord LLP

Locke Lord QuickStudy: SEC Sends Clear Message - Companies Cannot Restrict Whistleblowers Via Employee Confidentiality Agreements

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On April 1, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced its first enforcement action against a company for using improperly restrictive language in employee confidentiality agreements, noting that such limits...more

Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP

SEC Brings First Action Against Company for Potentially Stifling Whistleblowers With Confidentiality Statement

The Securities and Exchange Commission recently charged KBR, Inc., a Delaware corporation specializing in technology and engineering, with a Rule 21F-17(a) violation for using language in employee confidentiality statements...more

NAVEX

Do Your Confidentiality and Employment Agreements Violate SEC Whistleblower Protection Rules?

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As the SEC takes aim at whistleblower “pretaliation” (attempts to muzzle whistleblowers via confidentiality and other employment agreements—overt or otherwise) ethics and compliance officers need to take practical steps to...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

Ballard Spahr LLP

SEC Challenges Employee Confidentiality Agreements

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The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently announced that it brought (and resolved) an enforcement action against a company for allegedly discouraging whistleblower complaints by requiring employees to sign...more

Proskauer - Whistleblower Defense

SEC Announces Enforcement Action Regarding Employee Confidentiality Agreement

On April 1, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced its first settlement of an enforcement action under the SEC’s Rule 21F-17, which prohibits any person from taking “any action to impede an individual from...more

Foley Hoag LLP

SEC Charges KBR, Inc. with Using a Confidentiality Agreement that Could "Chill" Whistleblowing

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About six months ago, the Director of the Office of the Whistleblower warned that the SEC was “going to bring a case where somebody has asked an employee or forced an employee to sign a document that in order of substance...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

The SEC’s New Whistleblower Action: Is It Counterproductive?

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The SEC brought its first enforcement action centered on corporate restrictions which could impact employee whistleblowers, deterring them from reporting to the agency. ...more

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