# Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Employee Whistle Blower Protection > The remedies under SOX include back pay with interest, reasonable costs and attorney fees. Punitive damages are not available. The law is not well settled on Source: https://worklawyerca.com/sarbanes-oxley-whistleblower/ Firm: Employment Lawyers Group — employee-side employment lawyers since 1993. Serving Los Angeles County, California. Phone: (818) 783-7300 (calling is the fastest way to reach the legal team) Office: 13418 Ventura Blvd, Sherman Oaks, CA 91423 Contact form: https://worklawyerca.com/contact/ Consultations are free and confidential; cases are taken on contingency. --- Employee lawyers in states other than California have actively used the Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act of 2002 to protect whistleblowers. SOX has a whistleblower protection clause for employees of publicly traded companies, 18 U.S.C. 1513(e), 1514(A)(a). In California, SOX can be used as a basis for one’s wrongful termination cause of action, or California Labor Code Section 1102.5 cause of action. These two legal theories do not have to be filed in Federal Court, an employee does not have to exhaust administrative remedies under those two theories, and it is clear they can obtain emotional distress and punitive damages. Nonetheless, it is important to understand how SOX works. SOX whistleblowers are defined as employees who provide evidence of fraud, cause information of fraud to be provided, assist in an investigation regarding any conduct that the employee reasonably believes constitutes a violation of mail fraud, wire fraud, bank fraud, securities fraud, or any rule or regulation of the Securities and Exchange Commission. In brief, SOX protects both internal and external [whistleblowers](https://worklawyerca.com/los-angeles-whistle-blower-lawyer/). SOX’s whistleblower protections also extend to employees of a subsidiary of a publicly traded company. The act probably does not apply to employees working abroad for a foreign subsidiary. Like most whistleblower protection laws, SOX requires the employee to prove they engaged in protected activity, the employer knew of the protected activity, and the employee suffered an unfavorable personnel action. If the employee satisfies his burden of establishing a prima facie case under SOX, the employer must prove by clear and convincing evidence it would have taken the same adverse action absent the protected activity. The evidentiary standard of clear and convincing evidence is a more difficult than the general civil standard of preponderance of the evidence. It is the standard immediately under the criminal beyond a reasonable doubt. SOX is a powerful whistleblower protection law for employees of publicly traded companies. This same standard exists in California Labor Code Section 1102.5 which is a whistle blower protection statute. SOX complaints must be initially filed with OSHA. It is recommended that a SOX complaint be detailed. The complaint to OSHA should include all of the relevant dates, the acts and omissions that constitute violations of securities law. OSHA has a Whistleblower Protection Program website for this purpose. OSHA plans to soon only accept electronic complaints. **SOX complaints must be filed within 180 days of the alleged discriminatory personnel decision. This is substantially shorter than most statutes of limitation.** **After a SOX complaint has sat at OSHA for 180 days, an employee may then file a regular lawsuit about the SOX violations in Federal Court.** **The remedies under SOX include back pay with interest, reasonable costs and attorney fees. Punitive damages are not available. The law is not well settled on whether SOX allows for the recovery of emotional damages, but some low level federal cases in various districts outside of California have allowed emotional distress.** **Please contact my law firm if you have any questions about California employee rights, whistle blowing, or believe you were a SOX whistleblower.** ## Our Firm: No Upfront Fees or Costs ### Contingency Fee Representation All employment cases for employees are taken on a **contingency basis**. We are only paid a fee **when and if we win** your case, and we **advance all litigation costs**. Our goal is to make expert legal representation accessible to every hardworking employee. ### Serving Los Angeles County We have proudly served all of Los Angeles County since 1993. Ready to discuss your case? (818) 783-7300 Submit A Contact Form The Employment Lawyers Group has successfully handled 2,000+ Separate California Employment Cases ## Media Engagements ## Sample Case Results breach of commission contract $1,150,000 Unpaid commissions of two plaintiffs unpaid wages $875,000 For 4 oil field service industry workers whose times worked were not recorded on timesheets and were on-call forced to work without pay standby pay case $800,000 Controlled stand by class action settlement Disclaimer: These results are based on the facts of these specific cases and do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any future case. ## Practice Areas [Discrimination Age, Disability, FMLA/CFRA, Gender, National Origin, Pregnancy, Race, and Sexual Orientation discrimination claims.](https://worklawyerca.com/discrimination-attorney-8-facts-to-prove/) [Unpaid Wages & Overtime Recovering earnings for overtime, bonuses, commissions, meal & rest break violations, and prevailing wage claims.](https://worklawyerca.com/unpaid-wages-attorney-los-angeles/) [Sexual Harassment Compassionate and effective representation for sexual harassment and hostile work environment claims.](https://worklawyerca.com/sexual-harassment/) [Wrongful Termination Representing employees terminated in violation of public policy, contracts, or California and federal law.](https://worklawyerca.com/wrongful-termination-settlements/) [Leaves & Retaliation Protecting employees who face adverse actions after reporting illegal activity or taking protected medical leave.](https://worklawyerca.com/leave-of-absence-lawyer-los-angeles/) [Whistleblowers Advocating for employees who report fraud, waste, or abuse under California and federal whistleblower protection laws.](https://worklawyerca.com/los-angeles-whistle-blower-lawyer/) ## Our California Locations ### Bakersfield [BakersfieldLaborAttorney.com](https://bakersfieldlaborattorney.com) 5401 Business Park S, #214, Bakersfield CA 93309 [(661) 412-9600](tel:6614129600) ### Los Angeles [EmployeeLawCA.com](https://employeelawca.com/) 611 Wilshire Blvd, #1023, Los Angeles CA 90017 [(323) 525-1600](tel:3235251600) ### Orange County [WorkLawyerOC.com](https://worklawyeroc.com) 2522 Chambers Rd, #100, Tustin CA 92780 [(714) 210-8000](tel:7142108000) ### Riverside [RiversideEmploymentLawyer.com](https://riversideemploymentlawyer.com) 9496 Magnolia Ave, #208, Riverside CA 92503 [(951) 367-1000](tel:9513671000) ### Sacramento [SacramentoLaborAttorney.com](https://sacramentolaborattorney.com) 777 Campus Commons Rd, #200, Sacramento CA 95825 [(916) 340-0000](tel:9163400000) ### San Bernardino [EmploymentAttorneySanBernardino.com](https://employmentattorneysanbernardino.com) 337 N. 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He has represented a wide range of employees throughout California. Mr. Gerber has won **51 of the binding arbitrations and jury trials** he first chaired, and a number of his appeals are published. This deep trial experience is the foundation of the firm's strategic approach to litigation. The employment attorneys employed by the Employment Lawyers Group have worked at the firm well in excess of five years, have also tried many different labor cases, and have all been **extensively trained on employment and wrongful termination law by Karl Gerber**. [Meet Karl Gerber](https://worklawyerca.com/karl-gerber/) ## Ready to Discuss Your Case? Your rights as an employee matter. Submit a contact form and we'll get back to you. Submit A Contact Form [Call (818) 783-7300 Now](tel:8187837300)