July 18th, 2009 at 10:37am
Under Environmental Law
Those who report fraud, known in legal terms as “relators” and commonly as whistleblowers, have some of the most powerful and effective laws in the country on their side.
Whistleblowers may identify and report actual theft, false claims, over billing, up coding, unbundling, kickbacks, false certifications, violations of governmental regulations, destruction of company records, workplace violence, safety hazards or unsafe working conditions, environmental concerns, substance abuse, general conflicts of interest, release of proprietary information and other types of fraud or occupational concerns.
Some of the governmental agencies and laws that protect whistleblowers include:
* Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
* Civil Rights Act of 1866 (since amended numerous times)
* Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
* Federal False Claims Act
* Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act of 1970
Under the OSH Act of 1970, employers may not discharge or in any manner discriminate against any employee because an employee has filed any complaint, or instituted or caused to be instituted, any proceeding under or related to this Act. Additionally, the employer may not terminate an employee who has testified, or is about to testify, in any such proceeding.
Under the Act, an employee who believes that a work hazard exists, whether or not they have filed a claim, has legal protection to refuse to work if all of the following apply:
* The employee faces death or serious injury and the hazard is so clear that a reasonable person would agree with the seriousness of the hazard.
* The situation is so urgent that there is not time to eliminate the hazard through regulatory channels.
* The employee has tried to get the employer to correct the dangerous condition and they have not complied.
OSHA also administers the whistle blowing provisions of thirteen other statutes, protecting employees who report violations of various trucking, airline, nuclear power, pipeline, environmental and securities laws.
The Federal False Claims Act provides the legal framework for claims alleging fraud against the federal government, and it does several important things for a whistleblower:
* Provides specific protection for the whistleblower from discharge, demotion, suspension, threats or other harassment or discrimination that the whistleblower may encounter due to lawful actions taken in the furtherance of a whistleblower claim, if the employee is still works for the employer.
* Provides for filing a whistleblower complaint under seal, which means that no one other than the government, not even the defendants alleged to have committed the fraud, can know of the complaint until after the government has investigated the claims.
* Allows the whistleblower to share in the government’s successful recovery, from 15% and up to 25% of the entire recovery, in some cases.
Eleven states and the District of Columbia also have their own false claims acts that closely resemble the Federal Act.
Whistleblower laws allow for the contingent fee representation of whistleblowers. The Federal False Claims Act also provides that a whistleblower’s attorney’s fees be paid by the entity that committed the fraud in the event of a government recovery. Therefore, there are no costs/fees/expenses to the employee if the case is successful.
Anyone who knows of fraud against the government can become a whistleblower. Typically, individuals who know about fraud are employees or former employees of the companies committing the fraud these individuals often have the best evidence to support their knowledge.
There can only be ONE whistleblower claim based on certain information. The first to file based on specific information about a particular fraud preempts other whistleblowers and their claims. In addition, an employee cannot bring a whistleblower complaint if information about the fraud becomes public before bringing a claim.
July 14th, 2009 at 02:55pm
Under Civil Rights Law
Those who report fraud, known in legal terms as “relators” and commonly as whistleblowers, have some of the most powerful and effective laws in the country on their side.
Whistleblowers may identify and report actual theft, false claims, over billing, up coding, unbundling, kickbacks, false certifications, violations of governmental regulations, destruction of company records, workplace violence, safety hazards or unsafe working conditions, environmental concerns, substance abuse, general conflicts of interest, release of proprietary information and other types of fraud or occupational concerns.
Whistleblowers are protected by agencies and laws from the government which include:
. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
. Civil Rights Act of 1866 (since amended numerous times)
. Federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
. Federal False Claims Act
. Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act of 1970
Under the OSH Act of 1970, employers may not discharge or in any manner discriminate against any employee because an employee has filed any complaint, or instituted or caused to be instituted, any proceeding under or related to this Act.
Additionally, the employer may not terminate an employee who has testified, or is about to testify, in any such proceeding.
Under the Act, an employee who believes that a work hazard exists, whether or not they have filed a claim, has legal protection to refuse to work if all of the following apply:
. The employee faces death or serious injury and the hazard is so clear that a reasonable person would agree with the seriousness of the hazard.
. The situation is so urgent that there is not time to eliminate the hazard through regulatory channels.
. The employee has tried to get the employer to
correct the dangerous condition and they have not complied.
OSHA also administers the whistle blowing provisions of thirteen other statutes, protecting employees who report violations of various trucking, airline, nuclear power, pipeline, environmental and securities laws.
The Federal False Claims Act provides the legal framework for claims alleging fraud against the federal government, and it does several important things for a whistleblower:
. Provides specific protection for the whistleblower from discharge, demotion, suspension, threats or other harassment or discrimination that the whistleblower may encounter due to lawful actions taken in the furtherance of a whistleblower claim, if the employee is still works for the employer.
. Provides for filing a whistleblower complaint under seal, which means that no one other than the government, not even the defendants alleged to have committed the fraud, can know of the complaint until after the government has investigated the claims.
. Anywhere from 15 to 25 percent of the entire recovery can be made in some instances by the whistleblower.
Eleven states and the District of Columbia also have their own false claims acts that closely resemble the Federal Act.
Whistleblower laws allow for the contingent fee representation of whistleblowers. The Federal False Claims Act also provides that a whistleblower’s attorney’s fees be paid by the entity that committed the fraud in the event of a government recovery. If the case is succesful, then there are no expenses or monetary costs to the employee.
Anyone who knows of fraud against the government can become a whistleblower. Usually it is employees or ex-employees who report fraud of a corporation because they have the most knowledge of internal operations.
The law only protects one whistleblower-based claim. The first to file based on specific information about a particular fraud preempts other whistleblowers and their claims. In addition, an employee cannot bring a whistleblower complaint if information about the fraud becomes public before bringing a claim.
July 11th, 2009 at 05:38am
Under Administrative Law
It was not until 1986 when a law protecting whistleblowers is made. Congress added an anti-retaliation protection to the then existing False Claims Act.
A whistleblower is a person who tells on something he believes is an illegal act. The employees are the most commonly known whistleblower. They tell on their employers which they suspect is doing or committing an illegal act.
Under the Whistleblower Protection Law, the employee should not be discharged, denoted, suspended, threatened or harassed in any form that discriminates the terms and conditions of his employment because of the legal act done by the employee.
The employee may be of aid in many ways possible on the investigation, testimony and the likes. However there are some constraints under the whistleblower protection law.
Reporting illegal acts that are only within the company is a ground for exemption. But still there may be public policies that could protect the employee from retaliation
If it turns out that an employer didn’t actually break a law, the employee is still entitled to whistle blower protection from retaliation, if he reasonably believed that the employer committed an illegal act.
The whistleblower protection law does not cover employer retaliation for complaints about personal loathe. Office politics is not to be used as a basis for filing a complaint against the employer and use the whistleblower protection for personal gain.
In order for the employee to be protected from employer retaliation, he may the have a suspected desecration of any Federal Law. But the supposed violation should have provisions that the law violated will protect whistleblowers.
The Whistleblower Federal Law, unlike the False Claims Act, allows the whistleblower to file a lawsuit in a federal court. The Federal Whistleblower Law does not permit the whistleblower to go directly to the court.
The individuals concerned are pursued administratively. These individuals concerned could file a complaint or charge to retaliate with or without a lawyer to represent them. However if the case is not resolved immediately, the administrative law judge may then preside over the only evidentiary hearing that may take place.
A whistleblower should not attempt to delay an investigation of the possible legal remedy. To maintain this ruling, the retaliation should then be brought to the attention of an appropriate government official within 30 days, else the complaint could not be pursued.
Most states have some sort of statutory or common law “whistleblower” or anti-retaliation laws. Like the federal whistleblower laws, not every lawyer will know about these laws, especially laws outside their own state.
These states and the District of Columbia have recognized a public policy exception to the “employment at will doctrine”: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Some states have explicit statutory protections for whistleblowers. These include: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Washington.
There are also state laws that offer special protections just for their own state or local government employees: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington, West Virginia and Wisconsin.