• Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • Whistleblower Resources
  • FAQS
Subscribe
Donate
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
The Truth at Any Cost.
Qui Tam, Compliance and Anti-Corruption News.
SIGN THE PETITION FOR NATIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER DAY IN 2023
Whistleblower Network News
  • Qui Tam
  • SEC
  • CFTC
  • FCPA
  • Whistleblower Resources
  • FAQS
Subscribe
Donate
No Result
View All Result
Whistleblower Network News
No Result
View All Result
Home Corporate SEC

SEC Whistleblower Files Retaliation Lawsuit Against FirstEnergy Corp

Geoff SchwellerbyGeoff Schweller
October 23, 2020
in Corporate, Dodd-Frank, Employment, News, Retaliation, SEC
Reading Time: 3 mins read
SEC Whistleblower Files Retaliation Lawsuit Against FirstEnergy Corp
Share on TwitterShare on FacebookShare on LinkedInEmail

A whistleblower whose disclosure led to the opening of a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation earlier in 2020 filed a retaliation lawsuit against Akron utility company FirstEnergy Corp. On October 18, attorneys for whistleblower Michael Pircio filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, according to Cleveland.com. Pircio alleges that FirstEnergy retaliated against him for making a protected whistleblower disclosure to the SEC.

Pircio worked as an auditor at Clearsulting, a Cleveland consulting firm that assisted FirstEnergy with an internal audit. According to the filings, Pircio examined the audit of FirstEnergy following the indictments of former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and four others. Householder was indicted in July 2020 on racketeering charges involving a $60 million bribe related to the passage of a $1.3 billion bailout bill for two nuclear power plants that had been owned by FirstEnergy for several years. According to the filings, Pircio downloaded information from Clearsulting’s audit of FirstEnergy, observed potential securities violations, and forwarded the information to the SEC.

The SEC subsequently opened an investigation into FirstEnergy. The exact scope of the investigation is unknown. The investigation became public knowledge when attorneys for FirstEnergy and Clearsulting filed a lawsuit against Pircio in September. The lawsuit alleges that Pircio downloaded and shared confidential records that were unrelated to his work. Pircio allegedly downloaded the documents after he was fired by Clearsulting for unrelated reasons.

Support Whistleblower Network News

The lawsuit filed by Pircio’s attorneys is a countersuit. It alleges that Pircio’s former employers are targeting him because of his whistleblowing. The filings claim that FirstEnergy and Clearsulting’s lawsuit contains information that revealed Pircio’s identity as an SEC whistleblower, thus violating his rights to confidentiality and jeopardizing his ability to obtain employment.

The SEC Whistleblower Program was established with the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act in 2010. The program offers a number of anti-retaliation protections to whistleblowers who disclose potential securities violations to the SEC. These protections include confidentiality provisions meant to ensure that whistleblowers face no blowback from former, current, or potential future employers. The protections additionally restrict employers from terminating or discriminating against employees who make protected disclosures to the SEC. 

In addition to anti-retaliation provisions, the SEC Whistleblower Program offers monetary awards to qualified whistleblowers. Individuals who voluntarily provide original information to the SEC that leads to a successful enforcement action are entitled to an award of 10-30% of funds recovered by the government. Since issuing its first award in 2012, the SEC Whistleblower Program has awarded over $562 million to 107 individuals.

Read: Former auditor who launched SEC investigation accuses FirstEnergy of whistleblower retaliation.

Tags: Corporate WhistleblowersDodd-Frank ActSECWhistleblower ProtectionsWhistleblower Retaliation
Previous Post

Department of Justice Offering $10 Million Whistleblower Reward for Information on Election Interference

Next Post

Massachusetts Attorney General Sues National Addiction Treatment Center For False Claims Act Violations

Geoff Schweller

Geoff Schweller

Geoff Schweller is the Assistant News Editor for Whistleblower Network News. He coordinates news coverage, and also writes about breaking whistleblower news, SEC whistleblowers, IRS whistleblowers, CFTC whistleblowers, and federal employee whistleblowers. Geoff graduated from Hamilton College with a degree in Sociology and minors in French & Francophone Studies and Cinema & New Media Studies.

Next Post
Medicaid Whistleblower

Massachusetts Attorney General Sues National Addiction Treatment Center For False Claims Act Violations

Please login to join discussion

Receive Daily Alerts

Subscribe to receive daily breaking news and legislative developments sent to your inbox.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Most Popular

WNN Exclusive Interview with Social Security Whistleblowers Sarah Carver and Jennifer Griffith — Part 2

Change the Culture, Make National Whistleblower Day Permanent

Tell President Biden to “Finish the Job” for Whistleblowers

Whistleblower Advocates See Parallels to Enron in Silicon Valley Bank Collapse

Whistleblower Jóhannes Stefánsson Plans to Testify at Fishrot Trial in Namibia

WNN Exclusive Interview with Social Security Whistleblowers Sarah Carver and Jennifer Griffith — Part 1

Whistleblower Poll

Whistleblower Poll
Whistleblower Poll

Exclusive Marist Poll: Overwhelming Public Support Among Likely Voters For Increased Whistleblower Protections

byGeoff Schweller
October 6, 2020

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

STAY INFORMED.
Subscribe to receive breaking whistleblower updates.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

About Us

  • About
  • Contact Us
  • Donate
  • Careers

Subscribe

  • Daily Mail
  • Follow us on Twitter
  • YouTube Channel

Contribute

  • Letter to the Editor
  • Submission Guidelines
  • Reprint Guidelines

Your Experience

  • Accessibility Statement
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use

Help

  • The Whistleblowers Handbook
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Advertise
Whistleblower Network News

Whistleblower Network News is an independent online newspaper providing our readers with up-to-date information on whistleblowing. Our goal is to be the best source of information on important qui tam, anti-corruption, compliance, and whistleblower law developments. 

Submit an Article

Copyright © 2021, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

This Newspaper/Web Site is made available by the publisher for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice. By using this website, you understand that there is no attorney-client relationship between you and the Newspaper/Web Site publisher. The Newspaper/Web Site should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.

SIGN THE PETITION FOR NATIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER DAY IN 2023
No Result
View All Result
  • Exclusives
  • Government
    • False Claims-Qui Tam
    • Federal Employees
    • Intelligence
  • Corporate
    • CFTC & Commodities
    • Dodd-Frank
    • IRS & Tax
    • SEC & Securities
  • Features
  • Legislation
  • International
    • Foreign Corruption
  • Rewards
  • Whistleblower of the Week
  • Environment & Climate
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Employment
    • Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblowers
    • Retaliation
    • OSHA
  • Media
    • Podcasts
    • Videos
    • Webinars
    • National Whistleblower Day
  • Whistleblower Poll
  • Whistleblower Resources
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Resources for Locating An Attorney
    • The New Whistleblowers Handbook
  • National Whistleblower Day ’23

Copyright © 2020, Whistleblower Network News. All Rights Reserved.

Become a Whistleblower Network News Subscriber

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Subscribe to WNN

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Subscribe to WNN

Add New Playlist

Go to mobile version