SEC Whistleblower Lawyer Blog
The SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower has awarded another bounty to someone who helped by offering information.
The individual involved provided original information that led to a successful enforcement action. The information provided by the individual assisted the SEC with both administrative and judicial actions, and were treated as a single “Covered Action.”
Emily Pasquinelli, Acting Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower, said that, “The whistleblower alerted the SEC to previously unknown conduct and then provided substantial additional assistance, which conserved a considerable amount of SEC resources.”
A second individual who submitted information was not awarded a bounty and did not seek reconsideration of the decision.
Timing Is Everything
The SEC does take into consideration when a whistleblower submits information to the agency. It’s generally expected that someone will submit information when they learn about existing securities violations, or shortly thereafter.
This whistleblower waited two years after becoming suspicious of a possible securities law violation. Waiting that long established what the SEC calls “unreasonable delay.” This led to a reduction of the amount the individual could have received had they reported the violations earlier. The SEC took into account the submitting of information as well as save “considerable resources” throughout the investigation.
Waiting a longer time, as this whistleblower did, meant that the wrongdoers were able to defraud investors or do other harm for a longer period than if the SEC was notified earlier. In some cases, the SEC may choose to waive the ruling, such as hardship to the individual. In this case, the SEC chose not to waive this ruling.
Other factors that could lead to a reduction of a bounty include interfering with an internal compliance and reporting system and culpability.
Retaining Experienced SEC Whistleblower Attorneys
Whistleblowers help everyone by notifying authorities of conduct that harms the public, while also earning financial compensation for themselves. Hiring experienced SEC counsel will greatly increase your chances of the SEC initiating an investigation based on your information. If you wish to remain anonymous, you must be represented by an attorney, who will submit everything on your behalf.
Silver Law and the Law Firm of David R. Chase jointly have experienced SEC whistleblower lawyers, including a former SEC Enforcement attorney on the team, so you will always have guidance throughout the process. Our SEC whistleblower attorneys can help you if you have information regarding securities or investment fraud, violations of federal securities laws, false filings, market manipulation, or other misconduct. You must provide timely, credible, and original information or analysis in order to be eligible.
Contact us through our online form or at (800) 975-4345 for a consultation. Our attorneys work on a contingency fee basis. This means that it costs you nothing to hire us, and we collect our fees when you receive an SEC bounty. Because we get paid when you do, we have the incentive to help you collect the maximum award available.