Whistleblowing can have devastating effects on the lives of the whistleblowers. Protecting yourself will be extremely important to both your safety and your professional reputation. Below, we discuss why it’s important to protect yourself, the fear of retaliation and blowing the whistle, and what you can do to protect your identity.
Despite the fact that it’s illegal for employers to retaliate against suspected whistleblowing employees, it happens with alarming frequency. It is not uncommon for employers to retaliate when they believe an employee to be tipping off the SEC.
This is why the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and Dodd-Frank Act contain provisions that explicitly prohibit retaliatory action, which includes one or more of the following:
When you want to do everything you can to protect yourself from retaliation, you need to move forward with your case carefully. You should first speak with a qualified whistleblower lawyer. This will allow you to report your tip anonymously to the SEC. You have the right to submit your tip to the SEC without an attorney. However, in these cases, the SEC cannot guarantee your anonymity.
By remaining anonymous, you’ll be able to tip off the SEC and protect your identity from both the SEC and your employer. The only time your identity will become known is if or when the SEC is ready to issue you a whistleblower award.
If you are ready to move forward with your whistleblower case, but you concerned about keeping your identity protected, reach out to an experienced SEC whistleblower lawyer at Meissner Associates as soon as possible. You can schedule your initial tip evaluation today by giving our office a call at 1-866-764-3100 or by visiting our website for more information.
