Whistleblower Protections

We represent clients who report their employers for engaging in behavior they believe is illegal or unethical and, as a consequence, suffer retaliation. Examples of employee complaints that may carry legal protection include complaints about Medicaid or Medicare fraud, workplace safety, shareholder fraud or other financial wrongdoing, and criminal conduct. Employees who uncover fraud, for example, fraudulent Medicaid or Medicare practices, may be entitled to a percentage of any recovery made in litigation through what is referred to as a qui tam action. We advise our clients on their rights, object to any retaliatory conduct on their behalf and take any appropriate action often in the form of an individual lawsuit or through a qui tam action.

Numerous laws protect employees who have uncovered illegal activity at their employers and suffered adverse employment consequences such as termination or demolition.

Employees in Illinois are protected by:

The Illinois Whistleblower Act – The Act makes it unlawful for an employer to retaliate against an employee who discloses information to a government or law enforcement agency, if the employee has reasonable cause to believe that the information discloses a violation of state or federal laws, rules, or regulations.In addition, under the Act employers cannot retaliate against an employee who participates in an investigation of unlawful activity or refuses to participate in an activity that would result in a violation of state or federal laws, rules, or regulations. An employee is only protected under the Whistleblower Act if he or she had reasonable cause to believe that the information disclosed was, in fact, a violation of state or federal laws, rules, or regulations. Prior to reporting activity to law enforcement or the governments, employees should evaluate whether the reported conduct could be reasonably interpreted as a violation. If an employer violates any portion of the Act as described above, the employer may be liable to the employee in a civil suit. Under the Act, a guilty employer may be liable to the employee for injunctive relief, twice the amount owed in back pay (in the case of a termination), actual damages, and special damages including mandatory attorneys’ fees and costs.

Retaliatory Discharge – Retaliatory Discharge is a form of wrongful termination relating to retaliation or revenge against an employee for an act not related to their work performance.  This can include quite common behaviors such as filing a safety complaint with OSHA or requesting unpaid wages.  Retaliatory Discharge can also occur in severe situations, such as an employee being fired after reporting sexual harassment in the workplace or being a “whistleblower” who exposed illicit or illegal activity.  An employee is also protected when refusing to carry out commands by their employer that they reasonably believe to be illegal or against public policy.

Federal and Illinois False Claims Act (“Qui Tam”)  – Both the federal government and the State of Illinois have statutes that entitle employees who uncover fraud against the government to receive a portion of the ill-gotten gains recovered by the government. Qui Tam lawsuits are most common in areas such as Medicare/Medicaid fraud, sales and income tax fraud, and defense contracting

Our firm has extensive experience in representing and recovering settlements and awards for employees in these matters.