When you go to work for a company in a management or executive position, you do so with the idea of advancing your own career and furthering the mission of the company itself. But if you discover that there is fraud going on, you are suddenly faced with a real dilemma: do you report the wrongdoing or stay quiet? Reporting fraud is the ethical thing to do, but many fear that doing so will put their career at risk. An experienced whistleblower lawyer can help you to do the right thing, making you eligible for potential rewards and still protecting your rights.

Whistleblower Laws

Whistleblower laws are designed to encourage people to report wrongdoing, no matter what their position. To become a whistleblower you can be an employee at any level within a company; you can also be a supplier, contractor, or anybody else who becomes aware of fraud either through observation or being told about it. There are several whistleblower laws that facilitate the process. These include:

• The False Claims Act (for fraud involving government contracting and procurement)
• The Internal Revenue Act (for fraud involving tax fraud and underpayment)
• The Securities and Exchange Act (for Wall Street fraud)
• The Commodity Exchange Act (for fraud in the commodities market)
• The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (for international bribery and the failure of publicly traded companies to have proper internal controls over spending)

These and many other whistleblower laws provide both financial incentives for reporting fraud and protections against reprisals. Higher-level employees and executives may have more opportunity for firsthand knowledge of fraud, but may also face more challenging repercussions to their actions. Each of the laws that a whistleblower can testify about provides explicit protection from retaliation by the offending company. As experienced whistleblower lawyers, we protect executives and managers by determining exactly which laws are most applicable and providing you with the most effective remedy.

Whistleblower Retaliation

Actions that whistleblower lawyers can protect executives and managers from include retaliatory investigations, unwarranted referrals for criminal or civil investigations, extraordinary reviews of time and attendance records, removals, demotions, reassignments, pay decisions, and significant changes in duties, responsibilities and working conditions. Executives and managers may also face threats of enforcement of nondisclosure policies. Our knowledge of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act will provide you with valuable knowledge of your rights.

Proving Retaliation

One of the most valuable ways that a whistleblower lawyer can protect executives and managers who have reported wrongdoing by their employer is to provide proof of retaliation.  An employer who has been accused of retaliation is required to prove by clear and convincing evident that it would have taken the same actions in the absence of the whistleblowing action.  We work hard to prove that they have not met their burden of proof through questioning the strength of the evidence, proving the motive to retaliate, and showing that there is no evidence of any similar action taken against similarly situated employees who have not been involved in whistleblowing.

Whistleblower retaliation claims are one of the most effective ways that whistleblower lawyers can protect executives and managers. Bochetto & Lentz can meet with you to tell you whether you have a potential claim, and to provide you with legal representation.

Learn More About Whistleblower Claims Here:

https://www.bochettoandlentz.com/practice-areas/whistleblower-claims/