Whistleblowing and Sarbanes- Oxley

Jordan Holloway

Lateffa Muhammad

Law, Ethics and Corp. Governance

10-25-15

Characteristics of a whistleblower are being uninterested in altering their behavior. They also allow their own attitudes and beliefs to guide them. They are also often very well educated and usually hold professional positions. A Whistleblower is a person who provides information that usually leads to an investigation and then results in the loss of a job for some and the loss of the reputation for the business involved.

On August 8, 2014the Second Circuit abanded a defense that focuses on whether a plaintiff’s complaint definitively and specifically relates to one of the categories of fraud or securities violations listed in Section 806 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, but it nevertheless affirmed dismissal because the plaintiff former employee lacked a reasonable belief.

The case was Nielson v. AECOM Tech. Corp. The plaintiff alleged that the company terminated his employment after he reported a subordinate for approving fire-safety designs without actually reviewing the designs of the fire safety plans. After the plaintiff was discharged he filed a Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower complaint on the basis of the before stated situation. The district court ruled that the plaintiff failed to engage in protected activity because his claims did not definitively and specially relate to a category in section 806. Rejecting that standard, however, the Second Circuit embraced Sylvester v. Parexel, Intl LLC. in which the administrative review board adopted a looser reasonable belief standard.

I believe that the whistleblower was justified in reporting the actions. Safety, especially fire safety, is very important. You have to make sure that everything is operational and up to all codes and certifications. You can’t do that when you don’t even