Webcast: The Patchwork Quilt of Whistleblower Programs
Webcasts | May 8, 2025
A growing number of federal, state, and international whistleblower programs create a complex and often overlapping landscape for companies facing potential allegations of misconduct. From programs established to generate enforcement leads for the SEC, CFTC, DOJ, FinCEN, and the IRS, to analogous international whistleblower mechanisms, each program has its own incentives, protections, and reporting mechanisms. These nuances result in significant enforcement risks for businesses across industries, but also opportunities to demonstrate effective compliance controls. This webcast explores the evolving whistleblower framework both in the United States and abroad, recent whistleblower trends, and best practices for managing whistleblower complaints while mitigating legal and reputational exposure.
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 CLE@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 in the General Category.
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.
PANELISTS:
Greta Williams, Co-Partner in Charge of Gibson Dunn’s Washington, D.C. office, is a nationally recognized employment lawyer and trusted advisor to companies facing high-profile employment litigation, internal investigations, and executive-level employment disputes involving claims of discrimination, harassment, whistleblower retaliation, noncompete violations and trade secret theft. Known for leading sensitive workplace investigations and handling complex cases with discretion and impact, Greta is recognized by Lawdragon 500, Benchmark Litigation, and Best Lawyers in America as one of the leading employment lawyers in the country.
Matt Axelrod, a nationally recognized white-collar defense lawyer with extensive criminal, national security, and export enforcement experience, serves as co-chair of the firm’s Sanctions and Export Enforcement Practice Group. Matt’s practice focuses on internal investigations, crisis management, and white collar criminal defense for U.S. and multinational companies. From 2021-2025, Matt served as the Senate-confirmed Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement at the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), where he led a team of over 200 agents, analysts, and compliance specialists responsible for enforcing the country’s export controls. Matt also previously spent 14 years at the U.S. Department of Justice.
John D.W. Partridge, a Co-Chair of Gibson Dunn’s FDA and Health Care Practice Group and Chambers-ranked white collar defense and government investigations lawyer, focuses on government and internal investigations, white collar defense, and complex litigation for clients in the life science and health care industries, among others. John has particular experience with the Anti-Kickback Statute, the False Claims Act, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, including defending major corporations in investigations pursued by the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Katharina Humphrey is a partner in Gibson Dunn’s Munich office. She advises clients in Germany and throughout Europe on a wide range of compliance and white collar crime matters. Katharina regularly represents multi-national corporations in connection with cross-border internal corporate investigations and government investigations. She has significant expertise in the areas of anti-bribery compliance – especially regarding the enforcement of German anti-corruption laws and the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) –, technical compliance, as well as sanctions and anti-money-laundering compliance. She also has many years of experience in advising clients with regard to the implementation and assessment of compliance management systems.
Osman Nawaz is a litigation partner in the New York office, and a member of the firm’s White Collar Defense and Investigations and Securities Enforcement and practice groups. He advises clients on internal and government investigations and enforcement actions, as well as follow-on civil litigation and regulatory and compliance-related issues. Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Osman concluded a 14-year career with the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC). During his time with the SEC, he worked in the agency’s New York Office, serving through multiple administrations and in roles ranging from Staff Attorney to Assistant Regional Director, and ultimately serving as a Senior Officer leading a nationwide enforcement group.
Sanford W. Stark is a partner in Gibson Dunn’s Washington D.C. office and the global Chair of the firm’s Tax Controversy and Litigation Practice Group. Sanford counsels on a wide range of complex domestic and international tax issues and has served as counsel in a number of the largest tax controversy and litigation matters in recent years. He is consistently named one of the nation’s leading Tax Controversy lawyers as recognized in Chambers USA, The Best Lawyers in America, the World Tax Experts Guide, the Tax Controversy Leaders Guide, ITR World Tax, and other publications. Sanford previously served as a Trial Attorney in the Tax Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, where he received the Tax Division’s Outstanding Attorney Award.
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