---
title: "Whistleblower Protection"
type: Legal Term
source: https://casebriefly.com/legal-terms/whistleblower-protection
---

# Whistleblower Protection

Whistleblower protection encompasses a patchwork of federal and state statutes that shield employees from retaliation when they report illegal conduct, safety violations, fraud, or other wrongdoing by their employers to authorities or through internal channels. Key federal whistleblower statutes include the Whistleblower Protection Act (for federal employees), Sarbanes-Oxley Section 806 (for employees of publicly traded companies reporting securities fraud), Dodd-Frank Section 922 (providing SEC bounties and anti-retaliation protections), and numerous agency-specific statutes such as OSHA's Section 11(c). Remedies for retaliation typically include reinstatement, back pay, compensatory damages, and in some statutes, double back pay or attorney's fees. The common-law public policy exception to at-will employment also protects whistleblowers in many jurisdictions even absent a specific statute.

## Related Terms

- retaliation
- wrongful-termination
- at-will-employment
- constructive-discharge

## Related Cases

- alexander-v-gardner-denver-co

## Example

An accountant at a publicly traded company who reports fraudulent revenue recognition to the SEC and is subsequently fired may seek reinstatement and double back pay under the Sarbanes-Oxley whistleblower provisions.

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Source: [Whistleblower Protection — CaseBriefly](https://casebriefly.com/legal-terms/whistleblower-protection)