Understanding Whistleblower Claims and What they Are
Employees and other individuals who came across original information that a company (or a company’s executives) were committing fraud or other wrongdoing used to have little recourse to act upon that information. In fact, such employees or individuals often were retaliated against or fired for exposing misconduct or threatening to “blow the whistle.”
In order to protect “whistleblowers,” the government put rules in place protecting employees from retaliation by their employer. Now, employees with sensitive information about corporate wrongdoing can come forward while retaining anonymity – in fact, if the information provided leads to the successful prosecution and payout by the company, the whistleblower can be entitled to a percentage of the penalties or fines. The amount is determined based on how important the information given was necessary in order to bring a successful case.
Record Whistleblower Rewards
The chart illustrates the top ten highest awards made under the SEC’s whistleblower program – six of which occurred during this past year. Understanding whistleblower claims and the awards that resulted from them is important to understanding how the program works.
During Fiscal Year 2016, the Securities & Exchange Commission awarded more than $57 million to 13 whistleblowers, each of whom provided the agency with enough information to lead to a successful enforcement action. Expect this number to continue to increase, as the whistleblower program has been increasingly effective in achieving positive results.
Call a Whistleblower Attorney Today
If you have information regarding company wrongdoing and have questions about how the whistleblower process works, contact an experienced whistleblower attorney at Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein, P.A., today for a consultation to discuss your rights and options.
With offices in Los Angeles, New York, Miami and West Palm Beach, our whistleblower attorneys have helped investment fraud victims throughout the U.S.
