Having the legal representation of a whistleblower lawyer is essential for people who have uncovered evidence of corporate wrongdoing or a white collar crime. Generally speaking, people who find themselves in the position to blow the whistle on these types of misconduct are in uncharted waters and their unfamiliarity with the situation can lead to bad decisions that they end up regretting.

An experienced whistleblower attorney who has already helped numerous people in situations that are similar to your own can give you the advice that you need to build a strong case, serve the public interest, do the right thing, and collect a substantial reward for doing so. Finding the right whistleblower lawyer in Las Vegas, however, is neither easy nor straightforward.

Here are a few things to keep in mind as you look for one.

Subject Matter Expertise

One of the most important things to know about whistleblower law is that whistleblowers can be involved in a wide range of subjects. Just a few of the things that they can blow the whistle on are:

• Accounting fraud
• Securities fraud involving the Securities and Exchange Commission
• Environmental violations
• Healthcare fraud
• Defense contractor fraud
• Tax fraud
• Any other false claims for compensation from a government program

Obviously, the factual situation behind a claim involving securities fraud will be vastly different than that of an environmental claim. This should impact your decision of what lawyer to hire. Simply put, a whistleblower lawyer with experience handling False Claims Act litigation or environmental claims is going to face a steep learning curve if they take on a case that claims that a hospital is overcharging Medicare and Medicaid.

You do not just want an experienced federal whistleblower lawyer in Las Vegas. You want a whistleblower law firm or attorney in Las Vegas who has experience pursuing the type of case that you have. You can look for this in the lawyer’s:

• Prior case results
• Undergraduate or graduate degree
• Professional background

You can also get a sense of an attorney’s level of familiarity with your field by their online marketing materials. If they have a legal blog or other articles on their website, read them. If they show a sophisticated understanding of your field, that might be the lawyer for you.

Prior Background in the Relevant Law Enforcement Agency

Another important thing to have whistleblower attorneys who have worked in the law enforcement agency that will hear your case. 

Depending on the subject matter of your whistleblower case, one or more of a wide variety of federal agencies could have jurisdiction to intervene and take over your investigation, and having an attorney familiar with federal whistleblower laws is a must. For example, if you are investigating fraud by a defense contractor, the Department of Defense (DOD) might get involved, while it would be the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS-OIG) if your case involves healthcare fraud against a federal program.

It is a big perk if you can find a whistleblower lawyer to represent you who has spent years in the federal agency that would listen to your claim. That experience on the inside of a False Claims Act case gives your lawyer a better understanding of the kinds of evidence likely to persuade the agency to intervene in your claim and take over the investigation. That understanding can make your own preliminary investigation even more efficient and less risky, speeding up the process of getting your claim in front of the law enforcement agents who will decide whether to get involved in it or not.

A Whistleblower-Centric Approach

All lawyers should have the interests of their clients at heart. However, it is especially important when it comes to attorneys who represent whistleblowers – and is also especially difficult to do for whistleblower lawyers – because there will be times where your interests as a whistleblower and as a professional will come into conflict with each other.

Most whistleblowers get access to the information that they want to report to law enforcement or the federal government through their job. Most of the time, whistleblowers report incriminating evidence about their employer or about a company for which the whistleblower is an independent contractor.

The fact of the matter is that blowing the whistle on wrongdoing will not ingratiate you to your employer and may deter future employers from hiring you. Therefore, proceeding with your whistleblower investigation is often directly at odds with preserving or enhancing your professional future. Additionally, it means that getting discovered by your employer before your investigation is complete will mean that your case will have all of the downsides and none of the benefits of a whistleblower claim.

Your whistleblower attorney needs to appreciate this conflict of interests, and should keep it in mind whenever they advise you on how to proceed. Your long-term interests will depend on lots of factors, including the risks of proceeding and the strength of your case, and you need a whistleblower lawyer who will focus on your well-being.

Access to Resources to See the Case Through to the End

Finally, you need a law firm that has the ability to conduct the whistleblower investigation in the event that the law enforcement agency refuses to get involved.

Recall that the goal of most whistleblower cases is to build a strong enough case on your own so that, when you reach out to the pertinent law enforcement agency and present the case to them, the federal agency chooses to intervene in it.

Federal intervention, however, is not guaranteed. Maybe the evidence is not strong enough, yet, or the alleged wrongdoing is not so large that the agency thinks it worthwhile to get involved.

If this happens in your case, you are still free to pursue the case on your own. Doing so, however, will require lots of time and resources – generally more than a small law firm can provide.