Whistleblower Lawsuits
To encourage citizens to report fraud, the government rewards up to 30% of the money recovered to forthcoming whistleblowers. Our legal team can assist you in investigating a fraud and filing a whistleblower lawsuit.
A whistleblower is someone who exposes the unethical or illegal behavior of any individual or organization, in public interest. Whistleblowers who report wrongdoing on behalf of the American public are protected by and eligible for rewards under a number of federal and state laws.
Our Laws protect and encourage Whistleblowers
A whistleblower can help in putting an end to a scam or a fraudulent scheme which is harming the public. Simultaneously, they also stand a chance to earn a reward for stepping up and exposing such illegal activities. Most of these statutes protect whistleblowers who report corporate fraud against the government and taxpayers.
However, a whistleblower can report a fraud in any industry which impacts a large section of public. Individuals have exposed a variety of frauds in many industries including healthcare, manufacturing, fin-tech, education, and more.
We have several laws to protect citizens who stand up to the all consuming corporate greed. We owe this to the work of several good samaritan whistleblowers and their advocates in our government. These laws enable and encourage more of us to take a stand for society.
If you wish to report or investigate a possible fraud, reach out to us and we’ll help you investigate.
Types of Whistleblower lawsuits
There are a variety of ways to be a whistleblower. However, employees and contractors who help recover taxpayer funds are the most protected and rewarded whistleblowers. Our main goal is to help people who can prove widespread fraud by their employer or coworkers and are willing to sue for the government.
Here are certain instances where whistleblower actions made an impact:
- Employees of Takata, an automobile parts manufacturer, were rewarded $1.7 millions for exposing the risks of fatal air bag inflators.
- Whistleblowers from Deutsche Bank were awarded $200 millions for exposing a massive fraud.
- West Virginia whistleblower rewarded $10 millions for exposing kickback policy at a Virginia Hospital.
- Pfizer sales rep, a Gulf war veteran, rewarded over $50 millions for reporting illegal sales practices.
- A whistleblower was awarded a whopping $24 million for revealing Hyundai and Kia’s safety problems.
Whistleblowers need competent legal representation to help them gather evidence and to file a whistleblower lawsuit. Furthermore, a competent legal team could also assist them in the maximum possible reward for themselves in successful cases.
Remember that the government needs substantial, detailed evidence of a systemic fraud scheme to pursue a whistleblower lawsuit. Without solid evidence or inside contacts, former employees will struggle to persuade the government to intervene. Unless they already possess or can access sufficient documentary evidence to support their allegations. Our team of experts can help you in collecting and analyzing the required evidence.
Protection provided to Whistleblowers
The False Claims Act (FCA) also protects employees who object to federal government fraud within their organization. Employees have three years from retaliation to sue under the FCA.
Remember that an employee can engage in protected activity even without filing a whistleblower lawsuit. For instance, just by investigating the alleged fraudulent activity or filing an internal complaint with their employer. Successful whistleblowers may receive compensation for their ordeal, including back pay, front pay, reinstatement, and damages for emotional distress.
Even non-employees, like contractors, are protected under these laws. The courts continue to reinterpret what constitutes protected whistleblowing activity with each new case. A careful study of the relevant decisions is crucial to understanding how these laws would apply to you.
Protecting Whistleblowers from legal consequences
The whistleblower may know about the fraud, but they rarely the ones who started or profited from it. If a whistleblower reports wrongdoing within the government, the agency does not typically investigate them for the reported misconduct.
Our lawyers may be able to negotiate immunity for the whistleblower in exchange for their full cooperation with the investigation, even if the whistleblower participated in the planning of the fraudulent activities. When a person comes forward with knowledge of a massive corporate scheme involving executive-level employees, the government is often eager to grant whistleblower immunity.
Identity of Whistleblowers
A qui tam lawsuit filed under the federal or state False Claims Act remains “under seal” while the government investigates the claim. For this time frame, neither the accused (such as your employer) nor the general public will have access to case files. However, the details of the case may become public eventually, revealing the whistleblower’s identity.
With the aid of counsel, whistleblowers can remain anonymous when filing complaints with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) or the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). However, even if a whistleblower submits information anonymously, there may be times when it is necessary to reveal documents that reveal a whistleblower’s identity to outside entities, such as in court proceedings.
Rewards to Whistleblowers
In the present day, whistleblowers can receive between 10 to 30 percent of any money recovered by the government as a result of their reports of fraud as fines or settlement. The amount of the award depends on the nature of the fraud, the total amount of the fine, the value of the information and extent of support provided by the whistleblower.
“[This] award underscores the SEC’s commitment to rewarding meritorious whistleblowers who provide valuable information and exemplary cooperation that advance the agency’s enforcement efforts,”
– Creola Kelly, Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower while announcing a $17 millions whistleblower reward.
Importance of being a Whistleblower
Stopping fraud would be much harder for the government without the help of whistleblowers. A research by the University of Iowa published in 2016 found that whistleblower lawsuits do have an impact on how corporations behave, even though some still try to get away with fraud. It allows for vigilant citizens to keep a watch from within the organization. Public health, environmental security, and economic growth are just a few crucial areas of impact where this kind of impact matters greatly.
If you are aware of a possible fraud and wish to investigate it further, please contact us to get in touch with the lawyers at ClassActionNews today.
You can read more about interesting class actions, including cases Whistleblowers in our News section on ClassActionNews.
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