Whistleblowers considering filing a Complaint under the SEC whistleblower program have substantial protections against retaliation by their employer or anyone on the employer’s behalf. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act expanded the protections for whistleblowers and strengthened prohibitions against retaliation. When the Dodd-Frank Act passed, the SEC implemented rules that allowed the SEC to take legal action against employers who have retaliated against whistleblowers. The means that employers may not discharge, demote, suspend, harass or in any way discriminate against an employee in the terms and conditions of employment who has reported conduct to the Commission that the employee reasonably believed violated the federal securities laws. Recent amendments to the whistleblower programs rules also require individuals to report information about possible securities laws violations to the Commission in writing before experiencing retaliation to qualify for the retaliation protection under Section 21F.Dodd-Frank also created a private right of action for whistleblowers to file a retaliation complaint in federal court. In addition to protections against retaliation Commission Rule 21-F-17(a) prohibits any person from taking any action to prevent you from contacting the SEC directly to report a possible securities law violations. It says: “…[n]o person may take action to impeded an individual from communicating directly with the Commission staff about a possible securities violation, including enforcing or threatening to enforce a confidentiality agreement with respect to such communications…”
JEFFREY NEWMAN IS A WHISTLEBLOWER LAWYER WHO HANDLES CASES UNDER THE SEC AND CFTC WHISTLEBLOWER PRGRAM AS WELL AS HEALTHCARE FRAUD CASES UNDER THE FALSE CLAIMS ACT (FCA) (QUI TAM). HE CAN BE REACHED AT 617-823-3217 OR AT JEFF@JEFFNEWMANLAW.COM
