Case: Individual Employment Rights/Whistleblowing (D.C. Cir.)

A D.C. federal district court denied whistleblower awards to two employees working at pharmaceutical companies operating in China who alleged that they reported illegal behavior in violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act to American media outlets. The employees claim that their report played a role in a successful enforcement action against competitor, Novartis AG, however the court found that they didn’t fall within any of the three reporting scenarios required under Securities and Exchange Commission regulations for award eligibility. The employees failed to establish that the SEC lacked deference to properly interpret the genuinely ambiguous text of the regulation ...