When you come forward as a whistleblower, you are entitled to certain legal protections. If your employer has violated your rights, you may be able to file a lawsuit for retaliation. Then, you may be entitled to substantial financial compensation. The amount of time that you have to file a whistleblower lawsuit depends on the statute under which you are filing a case. The one constant is that, if you missed the deadline, you would lose the right to seek compensation entirely.
What Is Whistleblower Retaliation?
Your employer may be very angry that you have taken steps to bring attention to their misconduct. They may subject you to certain adverse employment actions for coming forward as a whistleblower that can include:
- Termination
- Denial of a promotion
- Changes in your performance evaluation
- Denial of certain work benefits
- Subjecting you to a hostile work environment
You have the legal right to seek compensation when your rights as a whistleblower have been violated. The law wants you to have every opportunity to get justice, although you may need to do it within a compressed time period.
The Consequences of Missing a Statute of Limitations
The statute of limitations is a hard and fast deadline, no matter the law from which it originates. You have a limited amount of time to file a lawsuit. Once that time passes, your legal right to file a lawsuit expires completely. It is as if you do not have a right to seek compensation. If you miss the statute of limitations by even a day, you would not be entitled to your day in court because your case would be dismissed before it even reaches a hearing on the merits.
The Difficulties in Knowing When a Statute of Limitations Begins to Run
In whistleblower retaliation claims, you may not know exactly when the statute of limitations begins to run. Typically, the act of retaliation is what would begin the time clock. However, you may not know exactly when you have been retaliated against on the job. It may take some time for the exact scope and extent of the retaliation to materialize. A whistleblower protection lawyer can help you determine when the clock began to tick because this is an extremely important consideration in your case.
Filing a Whistleblower Lawsuit Under New Jersey Law
There is a New Jersey state law that provides protection to whistleblowers. The Conscientious Employee Protection Act (CEPA) prohibits an employer from retaliating against employees for taking a number of protected actions to bring attention to wrongdoing. The CEPA has a one-year statute of limitations. This time clock begins to run on the date of the adverse employment action. If an employer has taken numerous wrongful actions against the employee, the statute of limitations starts to run on the date of the last instance of prohibited conduct.
Filing a Whistleblower Lawsuit Under Federal Law
There are numerous federal laws that allow for whistleblower protection. One of the most common federal laws that whistleblowers sue under is the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Here, you have a much shorter time frame to file a lawsuit for whistleblower retaliation. You would have 180 days after the initial violation that you are reporting has occurred, or the employer has taken adverse action against you.
However, there may be different statutes of limitations depending on the type of case that you are filing. If you are filing a whistleblower retaliation claim for reporting an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) violation, the statute of limitations may be as little as 30 days. Therefore, it is essential that you contact an experienced employment law lawyer immediately.
Contact the Marlton Employment Lawyers at Burnham Douglass Today for Help Against Workplace Retaliation
If you have been a victim of whistleblower retaliation on the job, reach out to the Marlton employment lawyers at Burnham Douglass. We can help you fight back and potentially get justice for what has been done to you in the form of financial compensation. Schedule a free initial consultation with one of our employment lawyers by calling us today at 856-751-5505 or contacting us online. We have offices in Marlton and Northfield, New Jersey, and we proudly serve clients in South Jersey, including Marlton, Evesham Township, Cherry Hill, Camden County, Burlington County, Northfield, and Atlantic City.