As demonstrated by the $104 million dollar IRS award to UBS Swiss bank whistleblower Bradley Birkenfeld, one may hit a home run by blowing the whistle.  Some however, face criminal charges or other extraordinary difficulties because of their whistleblowing.

The New York City Bar Association seminar “The Ins & Outs Of Recovering Assets Via Whistleblowers & Other Tipsters”, discusses these kinds of issues.  It analyzes the dangers some whistleblowers brave, the reward programs offered by the IRS and SEC and the use of whistleblower tips.

The seminar will take place on September 27, 2012 from 6:00 – 9:00 PM, at The New York City Bar Association, 42 West 44th Street in Manhattan.  It will also be broadcast live on the Internet and to register for it, contact the City Bar Center For CLE,  212.382.6663 or visit: https://www.nycbar.org/CLE/pdf/09_12/092712_web.pdf.

An e-mail flyer¹ about this event, was published last week:

CITY BAR CENTER FOR CLE

 

 

 

 

Dear City Bar for CLE:

Last Thursday’s Wall Street Journal article Swiss Prosecutors Probe Julius Baer Data Theft, is about the investigation into the supposed sale of stolen Swiss bank account records to German authorities. The German authorities allegedly purchased these records to crack down on tax evaders who could have hidden assets in the Swiss accounts. Media reports like this, about hidden assets and detecting money in offshore bank accounts, continue to make headline news.

Our new seminar The Ins & Outs of Recovering Assets via Whistleblowers & Other Tipsters scheduled for Thursday, September 27, 2012 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., addresses such issues. It explains how assets can be hidden in cases ranging from tax to securities fraud to divorce. The seminar examines ways whistleblowers are sometimes used to detect and interdict these assets. It discusses the IRS Whistleblower Program, the new SEC Whistleblower program and some relevant Dodd-Frank whistleblower provisions. The seminar’s speakers will additionally address the ethical obligation attorneys have to advise a whistleblower client, about the risks of blowing the whistle.

One of these speakers is attorney Jack Blum. Mr. Blum served as associate counsel, or assistant counsel, or special counsel to three U.S. Senate committees or subcommittees; and been quoted by or mentioned in thousands of newspaper and magazine articles around the world. He was also an expert witness for the U.S. Department of Justice and the Internal Revenue Service.

His select clients include Heinrich Kieber, who blew the whistle on customers with offshore accounts at Liechtenstein’s private bank, the LGT Group. Mr. Kieber sold his whistleblowing tips to the German government, which used them to track suspected tax cheats. Although the German government placed Mr. Kieber in a witness protection program, Liechtenstein authorities seek his arrest for data theft / the alleged sale of the LGT Group account information.

Another speaker at the seminar will be Jordan A. Thomas. Mr. Thomas is a former U.S. Department of Justice trial attorney and an assistant director in the Enforcement Division of the SEC. At the Commission, he had a leadership role in the development of the new SEC Whistleblower Program including drafting the proposed whistleblower legislation and briefing House and Senate staffs on it.

At the SEC, he was also assigned to many of its highest-profile matters including Enron, Fannie Mae, UBS and Citigroup. The cases he supervised, investigated and prosecuted resulted in monetary relief for damaged investors, in excess of $35 billion. He is now a partner and chair of the Whistleblower Representation Practice at Labaton Sucharow LLP.

The chair of the September 27th seminar is attorney Fred L. Abrams. He publishes The Asset Search Blog via the Internet. It discusses legal strategies for recovering assets hidden by determined criminals and others. In describing the seminar, Abrams explained: Since Mr. Blum and Mr. Thomas have been at the forefront of some of the leading cases and legislation in this field, the seminar gives a glimpse of the real-life consequences of blowing the whistle. For more information or to register for the program, please click here.

This program will be held at the New York City Bar, 42 West 44th St. New York, NY, 10036. The City Bar Center for CLE is an accredited provider in the States of New York, California, Illinois, New Jersey and Pennsylvania! We encourage you to register online now, or by phone at 212-382-6663.
Don’t miss your chance to attend this very informative program.

Sincerely,

/s/ Michelle Schwartz-Clement

Director, City Bar Center for CLE

www.nycbar.org/cle

 

¹E-mail flyer reprinted with permission of The New York City Bar Association.