Following the SEC (17 C.F.R. 240.21F-2) and the Second Circuit (Berman v. Neo@Ogilvy, LLC (2d Cir. 2015) 801 F.3d 145) and disagreeing with the Fifth Circuit (Asadi v. G.E. Energy (USA), LLC (5th Cir. 2013) 720 F.3d 620), this decision holds that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act’s whistleblower protection section (15 U.S.C. u-6(a)(6)) applies to protect employees who report potential securities law violations internally to their supervisors as well as employees who report those violations to the SEC.
Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (Schroeder, J.; Owens, J., dissenting); March 8, 2017; 2017 WL 908245