Office of Special Counsel Archives

Special Counsel Lerner’s legacy as a bold and effective whistleblower advocate

After six years leading the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, the terms of Special Counsel Carolyn Lerner and Principal Deputy Special Counsel Mark Cohen expired this week. During their tenure, Lerner and Cohen reinvigorated the agency’s enforcement of the Whistleblower Protection Act and transformed the agency into a powerful force to combat waste, fraud, abuse and other wrongdoing in … Continued

Congress Strengthens Whistleblower Protections for Federal Employees

Yesterday President Trump signed into law Follow the Rules Act, which prohibits an agency from taking a personnel action against an employee for refusing an order that would require the employee violate a law, rule or regulation. The Act overturns the Federal Circuit’s 2016 decision in Rainey v. Merit Sys. Prot. Bd., 2016 WL 3165617 (Fed. Cir. June … Continued

OSC Urges Ninth Circuit to Adopt Suitable Exhaustion Requirement

In an amicus brief filed with the Ninth Circuit, the Office of Special Counsel urges reversal of a MSPB decision that imposes an onerous administrative exhaustion requirement on IRA appellants seeking relief at the Board under the Whistleblower Protection Act. In Johnen v. Department of the Army, the Board held that to satisfy the exhaustion … Continued

Whistleblower Protection Act Will Be a Critical Bulwark for Scientific Integrity in a Trump Administration

Whistleblower Protections for Government Scientists According to press reports, President-elect Trump’s transition team sent a questionnaire to the Department of Energy (“DOE”), demanding the names of employees who have attended climate-change-policy conferences or performed research on climate science. Some of the questions are a reasonable effort to garner information about ongoing DOE projects. But many … Continued

VA Whistleblowers Continue to Suffer Retaliation

A Washington Post article titled “At VA health facilities, whistleblowers still fear retaliation” reports that some VA whistleblowers continue to experience retaliation. Whistleblower law firm Zuckerman Law, which represents whistleblower nationwide, is representing VA whistleblower and has found that some VA managers are not heeding the message from senior leadership that whistleblower retaliation is … Continued

Whistleblower Protection Lawyer Jason Zuckerman Speaks at Panel About Whistleblower Protections

Whistleblower Protection Lawyer Jason Zuckerman spoke on a panel about the Whistleblower Protection Act at an ABA Federal Sector Labor and Employment Law Committee conference. The panel discussed the impact of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 and recent developments in the Office of Special Counsel’s enforcement of prohibited personnel practices. The primary impact … Continued

Supreme Court Decision Strengthens Federal Whistleblower Protections

Today the Supreme Court held in DHS v. MacLean that the a federal agency’s secrecy regulations do not override the protections of the Whistleblower Protection Act. In particular, the Court held that TSA Air Marshall Robert MacLean engaged in protected whistleblowing when he disclosed that TSA planned to cancel overnight missions just as the Department … Continued

Whistleblower Lawyer Jason Zuckerman Will Chair Panel on Strategies For Representing Whistleblowers In The Federal Government

DC whistleblower lawyer Jason Zuckerman will chair a panel about Strategies For Representing Whistleblowers In The Federal Government at NELA’s October 17-18, 2014 conference titled “Representing Federal Employees Navigating A Complex Landscape.” Panelists Thomas M. Devine, Bruce Fong & The Honorable Ronald J. Weiss will address the following topics: After a 13-year legislative campaign, Congress … Continued

Whistleblower Lawyer Jason Zuckerman Speaks at CLE about Whistleblower Protections for Federal Employees

CLE About Practicing Before the MSPB Whistleblower attorney Jason Zuckerman spoke at a DC Bar CLE program titled “Practice Before the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB): What Happens After the Whistle is Blown?” The program addressed the basics of Whistleblower Protection including a review of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) and how both whistleblower … Continued

Jason Zuckerman Speaks at ABA Program About Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act

In a presentation to the 2013 American Bar Association Federal Sector Labor & Employment Law Committee, Jason Zuckerman discussed the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA), which has significantly enhanced the whistleblower rights of federal employees. Zuckerman discussed changes to the scope of protected conduct, the availability of uncapped compensatory damages, the expansion of the individual … Continued

FCW Publishes Interview with Whistleblower Advocate Jason Zuckerman

FCW published an interview with whistleblower lawyer Jason Zuckerman discussing the important role whistleblowers play in disclosing wasteful spending, gross mismanagement, and dangers to public health or safety. Zuckerman called on federal managers to foster an ethical culture, which includes offering ongoing training, rewarding ethical conduct and holding employees at every level accountable for unethical … Continued

Jason Zuckerman Co-Authors Paper on Federal Employee Whistleblower Protections

Jason Zuckerman co-authored a paper titled The U.S. Office of Special Counsel’s Role in Protecting Whistleblowers and Serving as a Safe Channel for Government Employees to Disclose Wrongdoing.The paper discusses whistleblower protections for federal employees and OSC’s role in enforcing those protections.