The world has been turned upside down in recent months. The COVID-19 pandemic is causing unprecedented turmoil and economic dislocation, including millions of employees losing their jobs over a brief period of time. This instability and economic uncertainty, combined with a new patchwork of federal and state programs and laws, sets the stage for a deluge of misconduct allegations by current and former employees. In this regard, it will almost surely be similar to prior economic downturns which touched off enormous increases in whistleblower activity. In this one-hour program, Lee Dunst and Jessica Brown of Gibson Dunn, and Rob Biskup of Deloitte, will discuss the coming surge in whistleblower activity and how to properly address it. The panel will outline some of the challenges and opportunities facing companies with respect to whistleblowers; discuss factors that may drive whistleblower enforcement activities by state and federal regulators; offer practical advice on how companies can develop, update and implement compliance plans; and provide best practices for investigating and litigating whistleblower claims.
Webcast: Preparing For A Surge In Whistleblower Claims: From Developing A Compliance Plan To Best Practices from Gibson Dunn on Vimeo.
PANELISTS:
Lee G. Dunst is a partner in the New York office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and a member of the firm’s White Collar Defense and Investigations Practice Group. His practice covers a wide range of government investigations and white collar criminal and regulatory matters, including numerous whistleblower complaints, on behalf of numerous clients across the globe, including Fortune 500 companies, accounting firms, corporate executives, and special board committees. He has been recognized publicly for his successful work on behalf of his clients. Most recently, in March 2020, The Am Law Litigation Daily named Mr. Dunst as “Litigator of the Week” for obtaining a successful jury verdict on behalf of a Fortune 250 company. He also has been recognized in The Legal 500 US, with the publication describing Mr. Dunst as “knowledgeable and responsive,” and noting that he “provides a broad range of expertise and regularly advises clients accused of corporate fraud and alleged accounting irregularities.” Additionally, he has been named a “Litigation Star” and “Local Litigation Star” by Benchmark Litigation in its 2017-2020 editions.
Jessica Brown is a partner in the Denver office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and a member of the firm’s Labor and Employment, White Collar Defense and Investigations, and Class Actions Practice Groups. Ms. Brown has substantial experience conducting and managing workplace investigations and working with clients to address whistleblower complaints on a wide range of topics. She also represents clients in connection with government investigations, including white collar criminal investigations conducted by regulators in the U.S. and across the globe. In addition, Ms. Brown has defended nation-wide and state-wide class action lawsuits alleging, for example, gender discrimination under Title VII, failure to permit facility access under the Americans with Disabilities Act, and failure to compensate workers properly under the Fair Labor Standards Act. She is currently ranked by Chambers for Labor & Employment in Colorado in Band 1.
Robert T. Biskup serves as Managing Director, Regulatory, Forensics & Compliance at Deloitte with over 25 years of experience in the corporate sector and private professional settings. Rob is a former global chief compliance officer at a Fortune 10 multinational corporation and is among Deloitte’s global leaders in the design and operation of effective corporate compliance programs. He also has deep international experience handling forensic accounting investigations on behalf of management and boards of directors, including matters involving financial statement fraud, accounting irregularities, asset misappropriation, fraud and corruption. Rob also has served as a federal monitor, and has extensive experience working with companies operating under government monitors and oversight in regulatory remediation situations, including the enhancement of business process, regulatory, financial and accounting controls.
MCLE CREDIT INFORMATION:
This program has been approved for credit in accordance with the requirements of the New York State Continuing Legal Education Board for a maximum of 1.0 credit hour, of which 1.0 credit hour may be applied toward the areas of professional practice requirement. This course is approved for transitional/non-transitional credit.
Attorneys seeking New York credit must obtain an Affirmation Form prior to watching the archived version of this webcast. Please contact Victoria Chan (Attorney Training Manager) at vchan@gibsondunn.com to request the MCLE form.
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP certifies that this activity has been approved for MCLE credit by the State Bar of California in the amount of 1.0 hour.
California attorneys may claim “self-study” credit for viewing the archived version of this webcast. No certificate of attendance is required for California “self-study” credit.
