Dodd-Frank Act

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In Digital Realty Trust v. Somers the Supreme Court issued a destructive decision that will have far-reaching consequences for whistleblowers. Seemingly unaware of the practical consequences of its decision, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled to leave whistleblowers who report internally without critical protections under the Dodd-Frank Act.

Writing for Law 360, NWC Executive Director Stephen M. Kohn explains that employees now take grave risks in using internal compliance programs. In light of the Supreme Court’s decision, whistleblowers should hire an attorney and take their complaints directly to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).…

Continue Reading National Whistleblower Center Executive Director Explains Why Supreme Court Decision in Digital Realty is Disastrous for Internal Compliance Programs  

Corporate Compliance Programs Crippled and Thousands of Employees Lose Protection

Washington, D.C. | February 21, 2018 — In a groundbreaking anti-whistleblower decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that employees who report violations of securities law to their supervisors or corporate compliance programs, but not to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), are not protected from retaliation under the Dodd-Frank Act (DFA).
Continue Reading Supreme Court Rejects Protecting Internal Whistleblowers

On Tuesday, October 17, 2017, Senator Charles Grassley and the Securities and Exchange Commission joined the National Whistleblower Center in supporting the whistleblower in Digital Realty Trust v. Somers (No. 16-1276) by filing amicus briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court.
Continue Reading Senator Grassley and SEC Join NWC in Filing Amicus Briefs in Critical Supreme Court Case

The fate of corporate whistleblowers and compliance programs is on the line as the U.S. Supreme Court reviews the case of Digital Realty Trust V. Somers. At issue in this case is whether whistleblowers who report potential violations within their organizations, as opposed to reporting directly to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), are protected under the Dodd-Frank Act (DFA).
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Continue Reading Wall Street’s War on Corporate Whistleblowers Reaches Supreme Court

This term the U.S. Supreme Court will decide Digital Realty Trust v. Somers (Digital), one of the most important whistleblower cases to come before the Court in 20-years.   The Chamber of Commerce and its Wall Street allies want to strip all employees who report securities frauds internally to their compliance departments or managers from protection under the Dodd-Frank Act’s (DFA) whistleblower law.
Continue Reading Thousands of Whistleblower Cases in Jeopardy

Corporate whistleblower protection “undermined” if internal complaints not protected.

Washington, D.C. June 26, 2017.  The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari today in the case of Digital Realty Trust, Inc. v. Somers, Paul.  The Court will decide the issue of whether internal reports to managers are covered under the Dodd-Frank Act’s anti-retaliation law.
Continue Reading U.S. Supreme Court to Review Dodd-Frank Anti-Retaliation Provisions

Later this week, the House of Representatives is set to vote on the Financial CHOICE Act. Congressman Jeb Hensarling (R – TX), Chair of the House Financial Services Committee, designed and championed this bill. The CHOICE Act will repeal major parts of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Financial Protection Act, and deregulate U.S. financial markets. The bill also advances a toxic anti-whistleblower policy (Section 828), which would undermine the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) highly successful whistleblower program—incapacitating the most effective tool to rein in misconduct and criminal activity on Wall Street.
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Continue Reading NWC Leads Opposition to Anti-Whistleblower Financial CHOICE Act

The National Whistleblower Center (NWC) intensified its campaign to save the whistleblower provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act.  The NWC’s action alert members have sent over 31,000 messages to Congress as of 3 pm (EST) today. If you have not yet acted, do so now!…
Continue Reading NWC Intensifies Campaign to Protect Dodd-Frank Whistleblowers

Today, National Whistleblower Center Executive Director Stephen Kohn submitted testimony to the House Financial Services Committee in defense of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) whistleblower program—a highly successful program that has protected investors and recovered $1 billion from Wall Street fraudsters since its inception.

Section 823 of the draft Financial Choice Act of 2017 directly, and negatively, impacts the whistleblower protections afforded under the Securities and Exchange Act (“SEA”).  While it purports to exclude opportunistic individuals from the SEA’s reward provisions if they are “culpable” for the violation for which they are reporting, this amendment is not needed and would undermine the SEA’s highly successful whistleblower law.…

Continue Reading National Whistleblower Center Testifies Before House Committee in Defense of the SEC Whistleblower Program