DOJ withdraws appeal in criminal tax whistleblower case; whistleblowers to obtain US$12.9 million award

WASHINGTON, D.C. | MARCH 29, 2018—The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit today will dismiss an appeal filed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) challenging the right of whistleblowers to obtain a financial reward based on disclosing information that results in the criminal prosecution of tax evaders. The case concerned a major international financial institution that was sanctioned for illegally assisting U.S. citizens in evading taxes. The IRS had initially denied an award to the two whistleblowers.  The whistleblowers challenged the denial in Tax Court and prevailed.  However, the DOJ and IRS challenged this finding in the Court of Appeals. Today, at the request of DOJ, that appeal will be dismissed, and the two whistleblowers will become the first persons to obtain an IRS whistleblower reward based on a criminal tax prosecution.Continue Reading Historic Win for Tax Whistleblowers at International Financial Institutions

National Whistleblower Center states that Malta Gaming Authority lawsuit is an attack on freedom of speech and expression

WASHINGTON, D.C. | MARCH 8, 2018—The National Whistleblower Center (NWC), in cooperation with the European Center for Whistleblower Rights, has written a follow-up letter to a February 28thcommunication to the Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO), urging them to intervene in the libel lawsuit that the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) has filed against former employee and whistleblower Valery Atanasov.

To read the follow-up letter to the GRECO Executive Secretary, please click here.Continue Reading U.S. NGO Calls Upon GRECO to Intervene in Libel Lawsuit Filed Against Whistleblower Valery Atanasov

National Whistleblower Center Executive Director Stephen M. Kohn, in cooperation with the European Center for Whistleblower Rights, has called upon Malta’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat and the Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO) to protect whistleblower Valery Atanasov.

A former IT administrator at the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA), Mr. Atanasov blew the whistle on dodgy regulatory practices that could have allowed gaming companies to operate without proper oversight. Atanasov explains that some MGA practices “create[s] conditions that allow suspicious financial operations, money laundering, and other criminal practices.”Continue Reading Malta, We Have a Problem

National Whistleblower Center warns that Malta Gaming Authority lawsuit threatens rule of law

WASHINGTON, D.C. | FEBRUARY 28, 2018—The National Whistleblower Center (NWC), in cooperation with the European Center for Whistleblower Rights, requested the Group of States Against Corruption (GRECO), and the Prime Minister of the Republic of Malta to take immediate action to ensure that the whistleblower, Mr. Valery Atanasov, is not subjected to retaliation in violation of the Council of Europe’s Civil Law on Corruption and the domestic Malta whistleblower law.Continue Reading U.S. NGO Calls Upon GRECO to Monitor Malta’s Implementation of Whistleblower Law in Valery Atanasov Case

The illegal wildlife trade is wiping entire species from our planet, and causing irreparable damage to our biological ecosystems. Despite all of the national and international government regulations and anti-poaching measures by nonprofit groups and other organizations, wildlife trafficking is an incredibly lucrative trade that continues to thrive, valued at $7 – 23 billion per year.

If there is any hope of tackling the global wildlife trafficking epidemic, we must turn to practical, proven methods to find a sustainable solution. Harnessing the power of whistleblowers to combat wildlife crime would be an absolute game-changer (Stephen Kohn, Monetary Rewards for Wildlife Whistleblowers).Continue Reading Whistleblowers: Our Secret Weapon in the Fight Against Wildlife Trafficking

On January 26, 2017, whistleblower attorney and National Whistleblower Center Executive Director, Stephen Kohn participated in a panel discussion at the University of Toronto’s Capital Markets Institute on the topic of “Rewarding Corporate Whistleblowers: Will this Improve Canadian Capital Markets?”
Continue Reading Video: University of Toronto Panel on Canada’s Whistleblower Reward Program

Serbian news media recently published an interview with NWC’s Executive Director Stephen Kohn. This fall, Kohn participated in the “For Every Truth There Is a Source: Protecting Whistleblowers and Journalistic Sources” conference in Belgrade. The international conference, hosted by the Serbian whistleblower advocacy group Pištaljkaa (The Whistle), and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Information brought together leading whistleblower experts from the United States and the United Kingdom; whistleblowers from Serbia, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Bosnia and Herzegovina; as well as journalists from Germany, Serbia and Montenegro, and prominent government officials from around the world.
Continue Reading Serbian Press Lauds Whistleblower Advocacy

Washington, D.C. December 6, 2016.  This Friday, December 9th, the United Nations and anti-corruption organizations around the world will celebrate International Anti-Corruption Day. International Anti-Corruption Day annually recognizes the critical fight against fraud and corruption, and provides a venue to discuss new strategies for tackling these issues around the world. This year the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have announced a joint global campaign: “United Against Corruption,” which focuses on how corruption impacts rich and poor countries alike and must be addressed through a unified international approach. The 2016 joint international campaign highlighted this in their statement on the campaign, “Fighting corruption is a global concern because corruption is found in both rich and poor countries, and evidence shows that it hurts poor people disproportionately. It contributes to instability, poverty and is a dominant factor driving fragile countries towards state failure.”
Continue Reading UN, Governments and Advocacy Organizations to Recognize International Anti-Corruption Day National Whistleblower Center joins as Part of the Day’s Celebration

The Economic Community of West African States’, or ECOWAS, recently held a weeklong anti-corruption meeting in Monrovia, Liberia. Attendees included 13 West African countries, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Arms, and international partners. As Tunde Ajisomo, ECOWAS ambassador to Liberia noted, “Fighting corruption is everybody’s business, but we need to put in place