Synopses & Reviews
Litigator, teacher, and scholar Stephen Kohn presents a comprehensive, unified examination of the 35 federal laws that protect whistleblowers and their rights, plus the common law protections available in each of the 50 states. For the first time in one easily accessed volume, readers will find the basic principles upon which all whistleblower law is premised. Mr. Kohn lays out the basic legal principles applicable to almost every whistleblower case, such as the scope of protected activity and who qualifies for protection. He shows what constitutes discriminatory conduct, what type of evidence demonstrates that improper retaliation occurred, the burdens of proof on both the employee and employer, how to calculate damages and attorney fees, common settlement and fundamental procedural issues, and much more, all in meticulously documented detail and a readable, engaging style.
Built upon Mr. Kohn's extensive practical experience and his scholarly research and teaching, not only is the book an essential resource for study and analysis of whistleblowing issues, but it is also a step-by-step guide for conceptualizing and litigating them. Attorneys with specialties in a wide range of fields involving whistleblower law and related policy issues will find a thoughtful, comprehensive examination, and an immediately applicable courtroom aid. It will also be important for human resource executives, labor union officers and attorneys, government contractors, and recipients of government grants, university and government libraries, federal agency executives and specialists, public interest and good government organizations—and many others who have become fascinated by this relatively new, but long-time coming, branch of the law, how it developed, and how it is being applied today.
Review
My personal advice to any whistle-blower is to make sure his or her lawyer has a copy of Kohn's book and has read it.Rachel's Environment &Health News
Review
There are at least three reasons why every lawyer should buy and read this book. First, Steve Kohn is America's premier lawyer on whistleblower issues. Second, whistleblower law protects vital freedoms of speech, conscience and petition--you should read this book to help understand how those freedoms are endangered by big government and corporate America. Third, Steve Kohn knows how to write about the law--he shows you why he has achieved his notable courtroom successes, and sets out clearly what every lawyer and every whistleblower needs to know.Michael E. Tigar Professor of Law American University
Review
Stephen Kohn's new treatise on Whistleblower Protection Law provides a critical resource in a vital area. Whistleblowers help protect us all in countless ways--they expose dangerous environmental conditions, unsafe work practices, consumer rip-offs, and fraud on the government. Kohn's scholarly, yet common-sense treatment of this subject, pulls together the existing amalgam of scattered labor and employment laws that protect whistleblowers and give the practitioner a reliable and effective tool for navigating these waters.Gerard M Waites Partner O'Donoghue &O'Donoghue
Review
Every whistleblower must read this book.National Whistleblower Center
Review
Stephen Kohn's new book on whistleblowing, Concepts and Procedures in Whistleblower Law, is a masterpiece. The book is an invaluable resource, which clearly and concisely explains the complex maze of regulations and laws governing whistleblowing. Comprehensive, well organized and readable, it is simply the best legal text ever written on the subject.Victoria Toensing Founding Partner, di Genova &Toensing
Synopsis
Attorney, scholar, teacher Stephen Kohn presents a comprehensive, unified examination of the 35 federal laws that protect whistleblowers and their rights, plus the common law protections available in each of the 50 states. He provides a step-by-step overview of how to conceptualize and litigate whistleblower cases; detailed analyses of protections for employees who disclose environmental, nuclear, and health and safety violations; a clear, concise presentation of the most important protections contained in the First Amendment, the Civil Rights Act of 1971, and the False Claims Act's qui tam provisions. Kohn also gives detailed discussions of protected activity, discriminatory conduct, proof of retaliation, burdens of persuasion, damages, and attorney fees. The result is a major, practical resource for attorneys, executives, judges, legal scholars, and teachers in various fields of the law.
Synopsis
Examines the 35 federal laws that protect whistleblowers and their rights, plus the common law protections available in each of the 50 states, and a practical guide to conceptualizing and litigating whistleblower cases.
About the Author
STEPHEN M. KOHN is a partner in the Washington, D.C., law firm of Kohn, Kohn &Colapinto, LLP, and Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the National Whistleblower Center. He is the former Director of Corporate Litigation for the Government Accountability Project. Nationally recognized for his scholarship and litigation on behalf of whistleblowers, Kohn in 1985 authored the first legal text on whistleblower law. He is the author of Concepts and Procedures in Whistleblower Law (Quorum, 2000).
Table of Contents
Overview of a Whistleblower Claim: A Step-by-Step Approach
Whistleblower Protection under the Common law: A State-by-State Review
Federal Statutory Protections for Whistleblowers
Whistleblower Protection under the First Amendment and the Civil Rights Act of 1871
Environmental and Nuclear Whistleblowing
The False Claims Act: Qui Tam Provisions and Whistleblower Protection
OSHA and Workplace Safety Whistleblowing
Legal Principles in Whistlerblower Law
Damages, Remedies, and Attorney Fees
Settlement Agreements and Hush Money
The Future of Whistleblower Protection: A Model Law
Appendixes
Bibliography
Index