Sean X. McKessy officially left his post as chief of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Office of the Whistleblower in July.
McKessy, who directed the office ever since it was established in 2011 after the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act, oversaw more than $85 million awarded to 32 different whistleblowers during his tenure. This included $30 million provided to a single whistleblower in September 2014, and another $17 million offered to an individual in June 2016.
In a statement shortly after the announcement, the SEC lauded McKessy’s service, stating that he had “helped establish the whistleblower office that assesses and reviews all whistleblower tips received by the agency, evaluates whistleblower award claims, and makes recommendations to the Commission on whether claimants have satisfied eligibility requirements to receive an award.”
A growing federal program
Over the past five and a half years, the Office of the Whistleblower has reviewed more than 14,000 tips from across the United States and 95 countries. The tips the agency has received has resulted in more than $500 million in sanctions against businesses and organizations throughout the country.
The SEC’s whistleblower program offers awards to individuals who report wrongdoing to the agency, as long as the tips provided substantially advance an investigation and provide information agency officials did not previously know. Whistleblowers may collect between 10 to 30 percent of the total sanctions levied against the organization in question.
With whistleblowers receiving greater protections and incentives than ever before, it’s important for businesses to protect themselves through sound internal investigations. For more information, speak with a skilled and experienced Dallas attorney at Whistleblower Law for Managers.
