Recent Developments with SECs Whistleblowing Program

Published: July 14, 2023, 3:30 p.m.

In this episode of S&C\u2019s Critical Insights, Annie Ostrager and Tracy Richelle High, Co-Heads of S&C\u2019s Labor & Employment Group, discuss recent developments in the Securities and Exchange Commission\u2019s whistleblowing program.\xa0\nThe Sarbanes-Oxley Act, as modified by the Dodd-Frank Act, provides protections and incentives for whistleblowers who report potential violations of the securities laws. Dodd-Frank also incentivizes potential informants to come forward by authorizing the SEC to grant awards to whistleblowers.\nAnnie and Tracy discuss two recent amendments by the SEC to its whistleblower program that appear to reflect the agency\u2019s readiness to grant more and larger awards. One authorizes the SEC to make awards for related, non-SEC actions, even if they may be more directly connected to other agencies. The second gives the SEC discretion to grant a larger award in appropriate circumstances.\nThey also discuss two cases recently brought by whistleblowers against the SEC in the Third and Fifth Circuits involving the agency\u2019s denials of whistleblower awards.