Company Fined for Whistleblower Retaliation

The SEC fined a public company $500,000 for terminating and otherwise retaliating against a whistleblower who claimed financial statements may have been misstated.  The whistleblower reported his concerns to management, an internal hotline and, ultimately, to the SEC.  The company limited certain career opportunities and finally terminated him after an internal investigation found that the company’s financial statements were not misstated.  The employee had received consistently positive performance reviews.  The SEC claims that the job actions violated the whistleblower anti-retaliation provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act.

OUR TAKE: Dodd-Frank protects whistleblowers even if their assertions are later determined to be incorrect.  Notably, the respondent agreed to pay a fine to the SEC.   What about the aggrieved whistleblower?  We assume he will hire a lawyer and file a claim for wrongful discharge, if he hasn’t already sued or settled.