USDOL/OALJ: Sarbanes-Oxley ("SOX") Whistleblower Digest: Table of Contents

Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) Whistleblower Digest
Table of Contents

I.

STATUTE AND REGULATIONS

• Statutory and Regulatory History
• Constitutionality
• Preemption
• Retroactive Application
• Statutory and Regulatory Interpretation
  • Reference to Other Federal Laws for Interpretive Guidance
  • Value of ALJ Decisions as Precedence
  • Whether Section 1513(e) Creates a Private Cause of Action
  • Chevron Deference

II.

REMOVAL TO FEDERAL DISTRICT COURT

• Appeal of Secretary's Final Decision
• Bad Faith
• Collateral Estoppel
• Dismissal of DOL Complaint, Procedure
• Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies
• Mandamus
• When DOL Jurisdiction Ends
• Notice to DOL of Intent to Remove
• Motion to Reopen

III.

PROCEDURE BEFORE AND REVIEW BY FEDERAL COURTS

• Amendment of Complaint
• Discovery
• Party Not Named in Administrative Complaint
• Judicial Notice of Administrative Record
• Jury Trial
• Justiciable Issues
• Recusal
• Standard of Review
• Short and Plain Statement of the Case
• Statute of Limitations
• Summary Judgment
• Trial Management

IV.

REQUEST FOR HEARING

• Answer to Request for Hearing (Not Required)
• Cross-Appeal
• Failure to Serve Opposing Party
• Timeliness
  • Equitable Tolling
  • Date of Receipt of OSHA Determination
  • Request for Extension of Time to File Hearing Request

V.

FILING OF COMPLAINT

• Timeliness
  • Generally
  • Trigger Date; Final, Definitive and Unequivocal Notice
  • Private Tolling Agreement
  • Post-termination Events
  • Amendment of Complaint
  • ALJ's Authority to Raise Issue in Order to Show Cause
  • Equitable Tolling
    [filing in the wrong forum; severance agreements; ignorance of the law; etc.]
• Filing Directly With the Secretary
• Protected Activity Prior to Effective Date of SOX, But Adverse Action After Effective Date
• Whether the Respondent Must File an Answer to the Complaint

VI.

PROCEDURE BEFORE ARB

• Authority
• Briefing
• Consolidation of Appeals
• Declination of Review
• Interlocutory Appeals
• Official Notice
• Pro Se Litigants
• Reconsideration
• Standard and Scope of Review
  • Subtantial Evidence
  • ALJ Findings of Fact
  • ALJ Credibility Findings
  • New Evidence/Argument
  • Waiver
• Stay of ARB Order
• Substitution of Party
• Timeliness of Petition for Review
• Time Period for ARB Review

VII.

PROCEDURE BEFORE OALJ

• Amendment of Complaint
• ALJ Authority to Control Hearing
• Claim Splitting
• Decision and Order
• De Novo Proceedings
• Discovery
• Pro Se Litigants
• Reconsideration
• Recusal
• Remand to OSHA
• Service by ALJ
• Subpoenas
• Summary Decision
• Time Calculations
• Witnesses

VIII.

PROTECTION OF INFORMATION; PRIVACY; CONFIDENTIALITY

• Admonishments
• Complaint and Investigatory Materials
• Discovery
• Judicial Restraint in Drafting Decision
• Protective Order
• Pseudonyms
• Public Hearing
• Publication of Decisions
• Sealing the Record
• Striking Privileged Information

IX.

PRIVILEGES AND NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENTS

• Attorney-Client Privilege
• Litigation Privilege
• Non-Disclosure Agreements

X.

COVERED RESPONDENT

• Non-Publicly Traded Company
  [Non-Profit; Governmental Entity; Contractor; Representative, etc.]
• Non-Publicly Traded Subsidiary of Publicly Traded Parent, Generally
• Pleading; Amendment of Complaint
• Agency, Piercing the Corporate Veil, Intertwined Operations
• Extraterritorial Coverage
• Joint Venture
• Not a Publicly Traded Company at the Time of the Adverse Action
• Section 15(d) Exempt Company
• Liability of Individuals
• Liability of Company Engaged for Turnaround/Corporate Restructuring

XI.

COVERED EMPLOYEE

• Employee of Non-Publicly Traded Company
• Employee of Non-Publicly Traded Subsidiary of Publicly Traded Parent
• Employee Whose Work Was Outside the United States
• Contractor
• Former Employee

XII.

ARBITRATION AGREEMENTS; SEVERANCE AGREEMENTS

• Arbitration Agreements
• Severance Agreements

XIII.

BURDEN OF PROOF AND PRODUCTION

   A.

    IN GENERAL

   B.

    PRIMA FACIE CASE

   C.

    ADVERSE ACTION

• In General
  • After-Acquired Evidence
  • Complainant's Subjective Belief
  • Evidence of Prior Acts
  • Former Employee
  • Reasonable Employee/Materially Adverse Standard (Burlington Northern)
  • Summary Decision
  • Tangible Job Consequence
• Specific Conduct
  • Benefits
  • Blacklisting
  • Breach of Confidentiality
  • Constructive Discharge
  • Demotion/Reduced Responsibilities
  • Failure to Hire
  • Paid Administrative Leave
  • Failure to Promote
  • Hostile Work Environment
  • Increased Scrutiny of Work
  • Layoffs/Reorganization
  • Litigation Conduct
  • Offering Severance Benefits in Return for a General Release
  • Performance Evaluation
  • Refusal to Communicate With the Complainant
  • Setting Conditions About Continued Employment
  • Transfer
  • Termination From Employment

   D.

    CAUSATION

• Contributing Factor/Motiving Factor Standard
• Adverse Inference
• Summary Decision
• Temporal Proximity
• Respondent's Knowledge
• Complainant's Admission of Misconduct

   E.

    PROTECTED ACTIVITY

• Definitively and Specifically Standard
• Fraud Against Shareholders

   F.

    PRETEXT

   G.

    DUAL MOTIVE

   H.

    CLEAR AND CONVINCING EVIDENCE STANDARD

XIV.

DAMAGES AND OTHER REMEDIES

   A.

    REINSTATEMENT

• After-Acquired Evidence
• Enforcement
• Impossibility
• Front Pay
• Procedure
• Sanctions
• Stay

   B.

    COMPENSATORY DAMAGES

   C.

    SPECIAL DAMAGES

   D.

    PUNITIVE DAMAGES

   E.

    ATTORNEYS' FEES

XV.

FRIVOLOUS COMPLAINT; SANCTIONS; COMPLAINANT'S PARTICIPATION IN WRONGFUL CONDUCT

XVI.

SETTLEMENTS

XVII.

DISMISSALS AND WITHDRAWALS

• Dismissal for Cause
• Voluntary Dismissal

XVIII.

ATTORNEYS AND REPRESENTATIVES

XIX.

BANKRUPTCY

XX.

RES JUDICATA

XXI.

EVIDENCE

XXII.

IMMUNITY

 

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