SEC Whistle Blower Program

The Securities and Exchange Commission is authorized by Congress to award monies to those individuals who come forward to it with high-quality, original information that leads to a SEC enforcement action in which over $1 million in sanctions is ordered. The SEC has publicly acknowledged that: “Assistance and information from a whistleblower who knows of possible securities law violations can be among the most powerful weapons in the law enforcement arsenal of the Securities and Exchange Commission.”

WHO IS AN ELIGIBLE WHISTLEBLOWER?

An “eligible whistleblower” is an individual (not a corporation or organization) who provides original information about a possible violation of the federal securities laws that either has occurred, is ongoing or is planned for the future. It is required that the information provided to the SEC lead to a successful SEC enforcement action resulting in an order of monetary sanctions greater than $1 million. Importantly, the SEC does not require that the whistleblower be an employee of the target company.

FACTORS THE SEC CONSIDERS

The SEC will consider several factors in determining the amount of your award, as follows:

The SEC may increase the award percentage based upon:

1. The significance of the information provided to the success of the SEC action against the wrongdoers.
2. The extent of the assistance provided to the SEC in its investigation and any successful enforcement action.
3. The SEC’s law enforcement interest in deterring violations of the securities laws by making awards to whistleblowers who provide information that leads to the successful enforcement of these laws.
4. Whether, and the extent to which, you participated in your company’s internal compliance systems, such as, for example, reporting the possible securities violations through internal whistleblower, legal or compliance procedures before, or at the same time, the whistleblower reported them to the SEC.

The SEC may decrease the award percentage based upon:

1. If you were a participant in the securities law violations reported.
2. If you unreasonably delayed reporting to the SEC.
3. If you interfered with your company’s internal compliance and reporting systems.

CONFIDENTIALITY AND ANTI-RETALATION PROTECTIONS

Whistleblowers may submit information to the SEC anonymously through legal counsel. The SEC will, to the fullest extent possible under the law, attempt to protect your identity. Further, employers many not discharge, demote, suspend, harass or in any way discriminate against you because of any legal act done by providing information to the SEC under its whistleblower program.

MY FORMER SEC EXPERIENCE IS CRITICAL

My experience as an attorney in the Enforcement Division of the SEC is critical in effectively assisting whistleblowers in SEC cases. My years of prosecutorial work at the SEC, including over a decade of defending SEC investigations and SEC enforcement actions, has provided me a unique insight into how the SEC thinks, conducts its investigations and what it believes are important cases to prosecute.

If you have information of violations of the federal securities laws and wish to explore your options, and potential monetary rewards, under the SEC’s Whistleblower Program, please call me for a confidential consultation at no charge.