SEC Whistleblower Awards Exceed $500 Million

Jul 15, 2020 | Whistleblower

SEC Issues $3.8 Million Whistleblower Award; SEC Has Awarded Approximately $505 Million To 87 Individuals Since 2012

Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers aware that on July 14, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced a $3.8 million award to a whistleblower who provided significant information that helped the SEC disrupt an ongoing fraudulent scheme.  The resulting enforcement action returned millions of dollars to harmed investors.

“Today’s award underscores the paramount role the SEC’s whistleblower program plays in safeguarding the Main Street investor.  Since the beginning of the program nearly ten years ago, the SEC has ordered more than $2.5 billion in financial remedies based on whistleblower information, including more than $1.4 billion in disgorgement and prejudgment interest, of which almost $750 million has been returned or is scheduled to be returned to harmed investors,” said Jane Norberg, Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower.

The SEC has awarded approximately $505 million to 87 individuals since issuing its first award in 2012.  This includes awards to 20 individuals in the last 10 months, totaling almost $119 million.

All payments are made out of an investor protection fund established by Congress that is financed entirely through monetary sanctions paid to the SEC by securities law violators.  No money has been taken or withheld from harmed investors to pay whistleblower awards.  Whistleblowers may be eligible for an award when they voluntarily provide the SEC with original, timely, and credible information that leads to a successful enforcement action.  Whistleblower awards can range from 10 percent to 30 percent of the money collected when the monetary sanctions exceed $1 million.

As set forth in the Dodd-Frank Act, the SEC protects the confidentiality of whistleblowers and does not disclose information that could reveal a whistleblower’s identity.

Source: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission – SEC.gov

Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. 

$16 Million In Refunds To Victims Of Debt Relief Operation Scam

Jul 15, 2020 | Consumer Protection, Employment & Technology Archive

FTC Providing 27,083 Refund Checks To Victims of “Helping America Group” Scam

Kehoe Law Firm, P.C. is making consumers that on July 14, 2020, the Federal Trade Commission announced that it is sending more than $16 million to individuals who lost money to a debt relief scam that targeted tens of thousands of consumers facing financial difficulty.

The FTC and the Florida Office of the Attorney General alleged that a group of defendants known as Helping America Group got people to pay hundreds or thousands of dollars a month by falsely promising to pay, settle, or obtain dismissal of their debts and improve their credit scores. Over time, victims found their debts unpaid, their accounts in default, and their credit scores severely damaged—some were sued by their creditors, and some were forced into bankruptcy.

The FTC stated that it is providing 27,083 refund checks to victims of the scam. The FTC expects to collect additional money in this case, and plans to send a second round of checks at that time.  Recipients should deposit or cash their checks within 90 days. The FTC never requires people to pay money or provide account information to cash a refund check. If recipients have questions about the refunds, they should contact the FTC’s refund administrator, JND Legal Administration, at (833) 928-2567.

Source: Federal Trade Commission – FTC.gov

Kehoe Law Firm, P.C.