On May 17, 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it would award between $5 million and $6 million, the third-highest award ever, to a whistleblower who provided information detailing securities violations committed by the whistleblower’s former employer. Under the so-called “bounty” provision of the Dodd-Frank Act, the SEC is authorized to award
monetary awards
SEC Whistleblower Awarded Record $14 Million
By David R. Jimenez on
On October 1, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that an unidentified whistleblower, “who voluntarily provided original information” to the SEC “that led to the successful enforcement” action against an undisclosed company, has been awarded a record $14 million. According to the SEC, the award “recognizes the significance of the information that the Claimant provided to the Commission, the assistance the Claimant provided in the Commission action, and the law enforcement interest in deterring violations by granting awards.”
This is the third such award the SEC has made under the whistleblower provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (DFA) since the statute’s passage in 2010. The others were in the amounts of $50,000 and a little more than $25,000.
The latest record award is no surprise to employers and their lawyers who have been monitoring the SEC’s actions under the DFA’s “bounty” provisions.
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