Andy Howard was quoted in a Law360 article discussing the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act bill recently passed by the Senate, and how – if signed into law – it would greatly expand government whistleblowers’ chances in retaliation lawsuits by removing several barriers to claiming protected status, including eliminating exclusive jurisdiction for such claims in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
“It certainly is poised to increase litigation because it lowers the bar in terms of where a federal employee can sue the government for claims of illegal retaliation,” Howard said. “Traditionally, those claims were exclusively heard in the [Court of Federal Claims]. Now whistleblowers can bring those cases in their own backyard, in their hometown federal court.”