Statistics released recently by four separate federal agencies with jurisdiction over handling retaliation complaints filed by corporate whistleblowers and/or administering “bounty hunter” awards given to whistleblowers who reported alleged fraud against the U.S. government show record monetary awards were dispensed in fiscal year (FY) 2016.
The Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which enforces 22 federal whistleblower retaliation laws, reported that it received more complaints than ever before in FY 2016. In addition, the Justice Department (DOJ) reports so-called “bounty hunters” suing under the federal False Claims Act (FCA) were awarded a whopping $519 million last year, while bounty hunters exercising their rights under the 2010 Dodd-Frank financial reform law obtained record cash awards according to data released by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC).
And in a procedural decision that could make it more difficult to defend against FCA bounty hunter lawsuits in certain circumstances, the Supreme Court ruled in State Farm Fire & Casualty Co. v. United States ex rel. Rigsby, No. 15-513 (December 6, 2016), that the FCA does not require dismissal of a lawsuit merely because the bounty hunter violated a statutory requirement to keep quiet about it.
Members of the Equal Employment Advisory Council (EEAC) can read more here.