Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act

Signed into law by Barack Obama
July 21, 2010

Dodd-Frank was passed in 2010, and sought to tighten financial regulations in the wake of the 2008 fiscal crisis. Most of the law’s text is aimed at changing and clarifying the laws and regulations impacting the U.S. financial sector. In order to encourage effective implementation of the law’s provisions, the Dodd-Frank Act created new protections to encourage employees to report misdeeds at their companies. Beyond protecting employees from retaliation for reporting employer malfeasance, the law also created a program that provides monetary rewards to employees who actively report information about wrongdoing to regulators.

Enforcement & Remedies

Under the Dodd-Frank Act, employees or contractors with information about their employer’s illegal financial activity may file a form with the SEC explaining the employer’s illegal activity and the employee’s knowledge of the activity. The SEC will investigate credible whistleblower tips, and to the extent the employee’s tip results in a successful action against the employer, the whistleblower may collect a reward between 10% and 30% of the fines the SEC imposes.

Employees who suffer illegal workplace retaliation for disclosing an employer’s potentially illegal financial practices may bring an action directly in federal district court, and can take advantage of six year statute of limitations.

Notable sponsors: Barney Frank  Chris Dodd