Hit parade: countdown of key whistleblower decisions: over the past few years, new federal regulations have inspired many employees to whistle a litigious tune. Here's one observer's top 10 list of 2011 whistleblower 'greatest hits,' performed by workers, employers and the courts.

• Author: Pearlman, Steven J.
• Position: Legal

10

Don't Look Back (Bosfon)

Henderson v. Masco Framing Corp., No. 11 -cv-00088, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 80494 (D. Nev. July 22, 2011)

Before July 2010, when (he Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act was enacted, the plaintiff in this case--Timothy Henderson--entered into a pre-dispute arbitration agreement with his employer covering the Sarbanes-Oxley Act's whistleblower claims. The suit was filed under Sarbanes-Oxley's whistleblower provision, alleging Henderson was discharged in retaliation for complaining the company improperly withheld FICA Medicare taxes from his retention bonuses.

Henderson moved to compel arbitration, and the court focused on whether Dodd-Frank's ban on such agreements is retroactive. The court acknowledged that the two cases addressing this issue went in different directions and sided with the approach preventing a retroactive application.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

9

Too Much Too Little Too Late (Johnny Mathis and Deniece Williams)

Schroeder v. Greater New Orleans Federal Credit Union, No.IO-cv-31169, 2011 WL6307889; (5th Cir. Dec. 19, 2011)

The plaintiff, Mary Schroeder, was a manager in the company's lending department and call center. Around December 2007, she informed the CEO that she believed potentially fraudulent conduct was occurring in connection with lending practices. She subsequently also notified the board of directors and the company's supervisory committee, and said she also repeatedly contacted the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).The NCUA had no record of her calls, and she never told any supervisors about them, although two co-workers later claimed that Schroeder expressed her plans to contact the NCUA in June 2008.

The board discharged Schroeder on Oct. 8, 2008. She filed a whistleblower complaint under the Federal Credit Union Act, which bars a credit union from retaliating against an employee because that individual provided information to the NCUA or the U.S. Attorney General regarding any violation (by a credit union) of any law or regulation. A district court found for the company, and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the finding that the plaintiff's demotion, which was preceded only by internal complaints, was not actionable.

But the appeals court found that there was a serious fact dispute as to whether the company knew that the plaintiff complained to the NCUA. It also ruled that a question of fact existed as to why the plaintiff was fired, given its conclusion there was little evidence of disciplinary problems in her personnel record, and noted that her performance issues were recorded in her personnel file after her complaints to the NCUA I and just a week before her termination.

8

Come Together (The Beatles)

DeGuelie v. Camiili, No. IQ-cv-2172, 2011 U.S. App, LEXIS 24868 (7th Cir. Dec 15, 2011)

The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) makes it unlawful for an employee of an enterprise engaged in interstate commerce to "conduct or participate, directly or...