The venerable New York Whistleblower Protection Act has long allowed employees to report misconduct by their employer, at which point the public interest could be vindicated by the state Attorney General. But does an employee have a right to bring a personal claim under New York’s whistleblower law against alleged wrongdoers? The answer now appears to be “yes.”
This past Friday, Justice Loren Bailey-Schiffman rejected arguments by defendants in a whistleblower case that the Attorney General and the Board of Directors of a non-profit school have the ability to file suit under the Nonprofit Revitalization Act of 2013, which requires employers to enact policies to protect whistleblowers from retaliation. Instead, she ruled the whistleblower herself has a private right of action against the school and its Headmaster.
Continue Reading Whistleblowing as a Private Right of Action in New York?
The office of the New York Attorney General (AG), Eric Schneiderman, has recently reached settlements with two different companies that require each one to suspend their practice of requiring incoming employees to sign non-compete agreements. The settlements clearly send a signal that the New York AG is critical of employers who require low-level employees to sign non-competes as a condition of employment. These agreements were never favored by New York courts, and this may be the time to re-think the broad use of such contracts.
New York State Health Care—DSRIP, PPSs, COPAs and Antitrust “Immunity”
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