Whistleblower Protection Blog : Whistleblower Lawyer & Attorney : National Whistleblower Legal Defense and Education Fund : Whistleblower Protection, Fraud Claims : Washington DC

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TRAINING SEMINAR
Thursday, April 1, 2010 12:00 - 2:00 pm EST

Sponsored by the National Whistleblowers Legal Defense & Education Fund

Lawyers & the Media: Strategies that Work and Pitfalls to Avoid in Whistleblower Cases
Whistleblowers who come forward to expose wrongdoing are critical sources for journalists. All attorneys who represent whistleblowers and journalists who use them as sources must understand the laws in place to protect whistleblowers when their story reaches the public. Attorneys also need to know how to effectively present their client's cases to journalists. This seminar will cover the 1st amendment protections that attorneys need to know to protect their clients, and journalists need to protect whistleblower sources

This training will take place on April 1, 2010 at the National Whistleblowers Center and via telephone conference

For a full description of the seminar and faculty information click here. To register for this seminar, click here.

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The National Employment Lawyers Association (NELA), is presenting "Effective Appellate Advocacy In Employment Cases." Using a mock case, the seminar will feature workshops on brief writing and oral argument. This program will be held on March 12 - 13, 2010, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Dallas Downtown, in Dallas, Texas. Use this link to register now.

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I had the pleasure this evening of speaking to Prof. Jane Uebelhoer's business ethics class at Marymount University in Ballston, Virginia, this evening.  The class was inquisitive, and we had a wide ranging discussion about the history of whistleblower protections, current controversies and the need for new legislation.  They were surprised to learn that our nation's patchwork of whistleblower laws still has gaping holes where there is no protection for whistleblowers, such as in health care.  I was pleased to learn that the class had such a ready consensus that every American should have access to a jury trial if they are fired for reporting any type of illegality.  Hopefully, they will soon all join the National Whistleblowers Center's Action Alert network. I thank Prof. Uebelhoer and student leader Samuel Papkin for inviting me to this promising class. Here is my photo of Marymount University's Ethical Issues in Business and Society class of 2010:

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I had the privilege of speaking at the Tuscarawas County, Ohio, commemoration of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday. It has been 22 years since Rev. Christopher Lowery and I started these local commemorations. Here I am with my friend, Rev. Archie Jackson.

The event gave me an opportunity to speak about the persistent effect of slavery, and how many Haitian families could still use the wages left unpaid. I spoke of my affection for Tuscarawas County, and the many local organizations that help us live more justly with one another. I explained our work with the Bunny Greenhouse, Bassem Youssef and Bradley Birkenfeld cases.  I called for statehood for the District of Columbia and for passage of the Arbitration Fairness Act, HR 1020 and S 931. Ohioans have two Senators to call for co-sponsorship. DC residents do not. I reflected on the similarity of prophesy, especially as Prof. Francine Childs explained it ten years ago, and whistleblowing. Finally, I compared President Barack Obama's Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech with that of Dr. King.

The local Times-Reporter has a story about the event in today's edition. Thank to you Rev. Lowery and attorney Marvin Fete for inviting me, and for carrying on the local tradition of remembering Dr. King's message.

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I am pleased to announce here that I will be delivering the keynote address of the commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Day in Tuscarawas County, Ohio.  The event will begin at 7:00 p.m., this Monday, January 18, 2010, at the First Baptist Church, 140 Regent St., Dover, Ohio.  The local Time Reporter newspaper has a lead story about the event in today's edition.  The event will be an opportunity for me to speak about my work here at the National Whistleblowers Center, and how we draw on the message and mission of Dr. King. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., serves as a prophet for the present day. His message and life work ended apartheid in America. Yet, his call for an end to povery, discrimination and war are still unfulfilled. The national holiday in his honor is an opportunity for us to think about how every person has the capacity to change within, and to change the world.

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The National Whistleblowers Legal Defense & Education Fund's teleconference on National Security Whistleblowers is underway.  Shown here are Sibel Edmonds of the National Security Whistleblowers Coalition, Stephen M. Kohn, Executive Director of the National Whistleblowers Center, David Colapinto, General Counsel of the National Whistleblowers Center, and Mark Zaid of the James Madison Project.  The teleconference also includes participation by telephone of Fred Whitehurst of NWC's Forensic Justice Project, and TSA whistleblower Robert MacLean.

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The National Whistleblowers Legal Defense & Education Fund will host a conference call training seminar covering a number of innovative and alternative ways to successfully represent national security employees. The three presenters, Mark S. Zaid, Stephen M. Kohn, and David K. Colapinto, all seasoned litigators in this field, will focus on a number of legal tools including constitutional injunction, Title VII, the Privacy Act, FBI whistleblower procedure, and whistleblower laws protecting national security contractors.

The information that will be covered is valuable to any national security whistleblowers, anyone who represents these clients in their practice, or any advocate dedicated to preserving the rights of national security employees.

The teleconference will take place Friday, December 11, at 12:00 p.m. Eastern/9:00 a.m. Pacific.
Click here for registration information.

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The Whistleblower Film Festival has made a change for this Thursday's presentation.  On October 8, 2009, Public Citizen will present The Whistleblower, a documentary about Charles "Chuck" Hamel, the management consultant who blew the whistle on big oil in Alaska. He found himself the target of an undercover sting that threatened the lives of Hamel's whistleblowers in Alaska and even targeted a senior member of Congress. Nonny De La Peña produced and directed The Whistleblower. It is 50 minutes long.  Sponsors of competing House and Senate versions of the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA) are expected to attend and answer questions after the film.  These sponsors are Representative Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Senator Daniel Akaka (D-Hi). Regular readers of this blog will know that the National Whistleblowers Center likes the Van Hollen/Platts bill, H.R. 1507, and not the current Senate bill, S. 372.  The showing will be this Thursday, October 8, at 6:30 pm at the Capitol Visitors Center; 1st Street and East Capitol Street, NE.

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The first ever Whistleblower Film Festival is opening this Thursday, October 1, 2009, 6:30 pm at the Capitol Visitors Center; 1st Street and East Capitol Street, NE. The first film will be The Pentagon Wars. The film is free and open to the public. The Whistleblower Film Festival is part of the DC Labor FilmFest which features a series of films from October 13-16.  The Whistleblower Film Festival will continue every Thursday in October with Mr. Smith Goes to Washington (10-8), Silkwood (10-15), The Insider (10-22) and finally, The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers (10-29). Sponsors of the Whistleblower Film Festival include the Project On Government Oversight, Public Citizen, the Government Accountability Project, the National Whistleblowers Center, Union of Concerned Scientists, Bernabei & Wachtel, the Fund for Constitutional Government, Marshall & Banks and The Nation Institute. The Festival is part of their call for the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act (WPEA), a bill to give federal employee whistleblowers effective access to jury trials.

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In response to the many requests from our Attorney Referral Service (ARS) members and non-members looking for advice on whistleblower protection cases, the National Whistleblower Legal Defense & Education Fund will hold a two-hour telephone conference call on Wednesday September 30th from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm (EST) conducted by leading attorney experts.  This is the ideal way for attorneys to get answers to your tough questions about whistleblower protection, case strategies, legal remedies and laws.

NWC Special Counsel Dean A. Zerbe was recently added to the faculty for the call to address tax and False Claims Act questions.  Mr. Zerbe was active in Congressional investigations of government waste, fraud and abuse for over 25 years.  Mr. Zerbe left Congress in 2008 where his last position was as Senior Counsel and Tax Counsel on the Senate Finance Committee for Senator Charles E. Grassley. In his work for Senator Grassley, Mr. Zerbe was the driving force behind the drafting and passage of legislation that created the Whistleblower Office at the IRS as well as changes in the tax code that greatly expanded the rewards for tax whistleblowers. In addition, Mr. Zerbe was closely involved with the False Claims Act on behalf of Senator Grassley - who is the author of the modern False Claims Act/Qui Tam.

Faculty also includes Stephen M. Kohn, National Whistleblowers Center (NWC) Executive Director, Michael D. Kohn, NWC President, David K. Colapinto, NWC General Counsel, and Richard R. Renner, NWC Legal Director.

SIGN UP TODAY FOR THIS SPECIAL CONFERENCE CALL OPPORTUNITY!

For more information please click here.

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