United States Fourth Circuit

Petition for review of a ruling finding that petitioner's discharge by respondent-employer did not violate the whistleblower protection provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act is affirmed where none of petitioner's communications constituted protected activity under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, as a matter of law.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/05/2008
• Published 08/05/2008

Judges

• Before MOTZ, Circuit Judge, HAMILTON, Senior Circuit Judge, and CLAUDE M. HILTON, Senior United States District Judge for the Eastern District of Virginia, sitting by designation.

Court

• United States Fourth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• ARGUED:  David B. Shine, Donald Franklin Mason, Jr., Shine & Mason, Kingsport, Tennessee, for Petitioner.  Barbara Eby Racine, United States Department of Labor, Washington, D.C., for Respondent.  Joseph Michael Rainsbury, Leclair Ryan, PC, Roanoke, Virginia, for Intervenor.   ON BRIEF:  Gregory F. Jacob, Solicitor of Labor, Steven J. Mandel, Associate Solicitor, Ellen R. Edmond, Counsel for Whistleblower Programs, United States Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor, Washington, D.C., for Respondent.  Douglas W. Densmore, Leclair Ryan, PC, Roanoke, Virginia;  Betty Southard Murphy, Marc A. Antonetti, Baker & Hostetler, LLP, Washington, D.C., for Intervenor.  Paul Taylor, Taylor & Associates, Burnsville, Minnesota;  Jason M. Zuckerman, The Employment Law Group, PC, Washington, D.C., for The Government Accountability Project, The National Whistleblower Center, and Taxpayers Against Fraud, Amici Supporting Petitioner.  Arthur P. Strickland, Roanoke, Virginia, for American Association of Bank Directors, Amicus Supporting Respondent. A. Peter Brodell, Williams Mullen, PC, Richmond, Virginia;  Joseph E. Spruill, III, Virginia Bankers Association, Glen Allen, Virginia, for Virginia Bankers Association and Virginia Association of Community Banks, Amici Supporting Respondent.  Brian G. Cartwright, General Counsel, Andrew N. Vollmer, Deputy General Counsel, Jacob H. Stillman, Solicitor, Mark Pennington, Assistant General Counsel, Securities and Exchange Commission, Washington, D.C., for Securities and Exchange Commission, Amicus Curiae.