New York Whistleblower Attorney Defending Employees Who Speak Out

New York Labor Law Section 740 prohibits employers from retaliating against workers who disclose or threaten to disclose activity they reasonably believe violates a law, rule, or regulation. Other state and federal laws may provide additional protections depending on what you reported and where you work.

A whistleblower lawyer can help connect your protected disclosure to the employer's response and pursue available remedies, which may include lost wages, reinstatement, and other relief, starting with understanding protected activity under whistleblower law.

Call Mizrahi Kroub LLP at (212) 595-6200 for a free case review.

What Kinds of Whistleblower Cases Does Mizrahi Kroub Handle?

We represent employees who reported illegal conduct at work and faced retaliation as a result. Our whistleblower retaliation cases span a range of industries and types of employer misconduct common in the New York City workforce.

Industries where whistleblower retaliation runs deep

NYC's economy concentrates large numbers of workers in industries where illegal employer practices tend to stay hidden until someone speaks up. Finance, healthcare, hospitality, retail, and construction all produce whistleblower cases with distinct patterns. 

Billing fraud in healthcare, wage theft in restaurants, safety violations on job sites, and compliance failures in financial firms all land on our desks.

Founding partners Joseph H. Mizrahi and Edward Y. Kroub built Mizrahi Kroub LLP as a plaintiff-side firm focused on representing employees.

Whistleblower claims often overlap with allegations involving workplace discrimination, harassment, wage violations, or other unlawful conduct. 

We review the full circumstances surrounding the employee’s report and the employer’s response to identify the legal claims that may apply.

How our process works for whistleblower clients

Most whistleblower retaliation cases at our firm settle before they reach a courtroom. That means a quicker resolution and a less disruptive experience than most clients expect. 

Every client also works with a dedicated client relations contact throughout their case, so you always have someone to call with questions or updates.

What Does a Whistleblower Lawyer Do?

A whistleblower lawyer represents employees who face retaliation for reporting or refusing to participate in illegal activity at work. 

The attorney's role is to build the legal case connecting your protected disclosure to the employer's retaliatory response, identify which statutes apply, and pursue the remedies available under those laws.

How a whistleblower lawyer builds your claim

Whistleblower retaliation cases depend heavily on timing and documentation. A whistleblower attorney reviews the sequence of events, identifies which statutes protect your specific type of report, and builds the record that links your employer's actions to your protected activity.

The work a whistleblower attorney typically handles includes:

• Reviewing internal communications, HR records, and personnel files to establish a timeline between your report and the employer's retaliatory action
• Determining whether your report qualifies for protection under Section 740, a federal whistleblower statute, or both
• Filing complaints with the appropriate agency, such as the OSHA Whistleblower Protection Program or another agency with jurisdiction over the underlying violation
• Negotiating a settlement that may include lost wages, reinstatement, and other statutory relief
• Filing a civil lawsuit in state or federal court if the employer refuses to negotiate fairly

Employer retaliation often follows a predictable playbook, and an attorney who has handled these cases before knows what to look for in the paper trail.

Who Qualifies for Whistleblower Protection Under Section 740?

Section 740 protects most private-sector workers in New York, including former employees and certain independent contractors. 

The statute defines an employee broadly to include anyone who performs services under the control and direction of an employer for wages or other pay. 

It also covers natural persons working as independent contractors to carry out work in furtherance of an employer's business, as long as they are not themselves employers.

What type of report qualifies

Not every workplace complaint is protected under Section 740. The law covers employees who disclose or threaten to disclose conduct they reasonably believe violates a law, rule, or regulation or creates a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.

It also protects employees who provide information to or testify before a public body, or who object to or refuse to participate in the conduct.

You do not need to prove an actual violation occurred. Your belief must have been reasonable and made in good faith when you reported it. A whistleblower attorney can assess whether your disclosure falls within the statute.

What Other Laws Protect Whistleblowers in New York?

Beyond Section 740, whistleblowers in New York may have protection under several federal statutes. The specific law that applies depends on what type of illegal activity you reported, who you reported it to, and what industry you work in.

Federal whistleblower statutes

The chart below outlines federal whistleblower laws that commonly apply to New York workers. Filing deadlines, agencies, and procedures vary by statute, so this chart is a simplified overview rather than a complete guide to each law's requirements.

Because each statute has its own eligibility rules, filing requirements, and remedies, a whistleblower lawyer reviews the facts of your case to determine which laws apply so that no filing window closes while you are still deciding what to do.

NYC Human Rights Law anti-retaliation protections

The New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL) is not a whistleblower statute, but it does contain broad anti-retaliation provisions that protect NYC employees in related situations.

Under the NYCHRL, employers may not take adverse action against a worker who opposes discriminatory practices, files a discrimination or harassment complaint, or participates in an investigation under the law.

Many whistleblower cases in NYC involve overlapping legal claims. An employee who reports discrimination-related misconduct may have protection under both Section 740 and the NYCHRL's anti-retaliation provisions, depending on the nature of the report and how the employer responded.

What Counts as Whistleblower Retaliation Under New York Law?

Under Section 740, whistleblower retaliation includes any adverse action an employer takes to discharge, threaten, penalize, or otherwise discriminate against an employee who exercised their rights under the statute. The definition is broad and covers conduct beyond termination.

Common forms of employer retaliation

Retaliatory actions that whistleblower attorneys commonly see include:

• Firing, suspending, or demoting the employee after they made a report
• Cutting hours, reassigning shifts, or transferring the worker to a less desirable role
• Issuing sudden negative performance reviews that contradict a strong prior record
• Threatening to contact immigration authorities about the worker or their family members
• Taking actions that adversely affect a former employee's current or future employment

Section 740 specifically defines retaliatory action to include threats to contact immigration authorities regarding the employee or their family members, which reflects the realities that many New York workers face. 

Employers rarely frame their response as retaliation openly, and a whistleblower lawyer looks past the stated reason to build the case around what actually changed after you made your report.

Do You Have to Report to Your Employer Before Going to a Government Agency?

Section 740 includes an employer notification requirement for employees who want to disclose to a public body, such as a government agency. 

The statute provides that the protection against retaliation for public-body disclosures does not apply unless the employee has made a good-faith effort to bring the activity, policy, or practice to the attention of a supervisor and has given the employer a reasonable opportunity to correct it, a procedural step built into the broader principle that retaliation for whistleblowing is illegal under New York and federal law.

When the statute waives the employer notification requirement

The statute carves out five specific situations where prior employer notification is not required. 

These exceptions are written into Section 740 and apply when the circumstances make internal reporting impractical, unsafe, or likely to cause further harm.

Under the statute, an employee is not required to notify their employer first if:

• There is an imminent and serious danger to the public health or safety
• The employee reasonably believes that reporting to their supervisor would result in the destruction of evidence or other concealment of the activity, policy, or practice
• The activity, policy, or practice could reasonably be expected to lead to endangering the welfare of a minor
• The employee reasonably believes that reporting to their supervisor would result in physical harm to the employee or any other person
• The employee reasonably believes that the supervisor is already aware of the activity, policy, or practice and has not corrected it

This notification requirement trips up many employees, and failing to satisfy it may affect a Section 740 claim involving a public-body disclosure. 

If you are uncertain whether your report met the statute's requirements, discussing the facts with a whistleblower attorney before taking further steps helps protect your legal position. 

Call Mizrahi Kroub LLP at (212) 595-6200 to talk through the specifics of your situation.

What Remedies Are Available in a New York Whistleblower Retaliation Case?

Section 740 authorizes courts to order several forms of relief for employees who prove retaliation. The specific remedies a court may award depend on the facts of the case and the nature of the violation.

Relief available under Section 740

Under the statute, a court may order any of the following forms of relief:

• An injunction to stop the employer's continued violation of the statute
• Reinstatement to the same or an equivalent position, or front pay if reinstatement is not practical
• Compensation for lost wages, benefits, and other remuneration
• Payment of reasonable costs, disbursements, and attorney's fees
• A civil penalty, which the statute caps at $10,000

If a court finds that the employer's violation was willful, malicious, or wanton, the statute also authorizes punitive damages. Not every case qualifies for every remedy, and the availability of specific relief depends on the facts presented to the court.

Federal whistleblower statutes carry their own remedy structures. Under the Dodd-Frank Act’s anti-retaliation provisions, a successful claimant may seek remedies such as reinstatement, double back pay, litigation costs, and attorney’s fees, depending on the facts and the claim.

A whistleblower lawyer identifies which statutes apply and what relief each one makes available in your specific case.

Ask Mizrahi Kroub

Can my employer fire me for reporting illegal activity in New York?

Firing an employee for making a protected disclosure about illegal employer conduct is prohibited under Section 740 and, depending on what was reported, may also violate federal law. 

If your employer terminated you after you disclosed conduct you reasonably believed to be illegal, you may have a retaliation claim. The law protects both internal reports to supervisors and, when statutory conditions are met, external reports to government agencies.

How long do I have to file a whistleblower retaliation claim in New York?

Under Section 740, you have two years from the date of the retaliatory act to file a civil action. Federal whistleblower statutes have shorter deadlines, some as brief as 30 days for OSHA safety complaints and 180 days for Sarbanes-Oxley claims. 

Because multiple statutes may apply to your situation with different deadlines, contacting a whistleblower attorney promptly helps protect all of your filing options.

How much does a whistleblower lawyer in New York cost?

At Mizrahi Kroub, we handle many whistleblower retaliation cases on a contingency fee basis, meaning we collect a fee only when we recover money for you. 

If there is no recovery, you owe us nothing. A free consultation gives you a clear picture of whether your case has legal merit and which statutes may apply.

What if I reported something but I am not sure it was actually illegal?

You may still have protection. Section 740 covers employees who reasonably believe that the employer's conduct violates a law, rule, or regulation. You do not need to prove that a violation actually occurred. 

What matters is whether your belief was reasonable and made in good faith at the time you made the report. A whistleblower attorney reviews the facts to determine whether your disclosure falls within the statute's protections.

FAQs for Whistleblower Lawyers

What is the difference between a whistleblower statute and an anti-retaliation law?

A whistleblower statute, like Section 740, protects employees who report or refuse to participate in conduct they reasonably believe violates a law, rule, or regulation, or poses a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.

Anti-retaliation laws, like those found in the NYCHRL and Title VII, protect employees who oppose discriminatory practices or participate in discrimination investigations. 

The protections overlap in some situations, but they address different types of employer misconduct and follow different procedural requirements. Many employees have claims under both types of law at the same time.

Do whistleblower protections in New York apply to independent contractors?

They may. Section 740 defines an employee to include natural persons employed as independent contractors to carry out work in furtherance of an employer's business, as long as they are not themselves employers. 

Whether a particular independent contractor qualifies depends on the specific working relationship and how much control the employer exercises over the work. A whistleblower attorney reviews the facts to determine whether you meet the statute's definition.

What if I reported the problem to a coworker but not to a supervisor?

That report may not satisfy Section 740's requirements. The statute refers to disclosures made to a supervisor or to a public body. Section 740 defines a supervisor as someone with authority to direct the employee's work or to take corrective action regarding the violation. 

Reporting to a coworker who lacks that authority might not qualify as a protected disclosure under the statute. If you are unsure whether your report reached the right person, speaking with a whistleblower lawyer helps clarify your position before taking further steps.

What evidence do I need for a whistleblower retaliation case in New York?

The strongest whistleblower retaliation cases rely on documentation that connects the protected report to the employer's adverse action. 

Emails, text messages, written complaints, HR records, performance reviews, and records showing the timeline between your report and the retaliation all serve as evidence. 

You do not need a smoking gun. Circumstantial evidence, particularly a close time connection between your report and the employer's response, carries significant weight in these cases.

Do federal employees have whistleblower protections in New York?

Yes, but federal employees are generally covered under a separate framework. The Whistleblower Protection Act and the Whistleblower Protection Enhancement Act protect federal workers who disclose government waste, fraud, or abuse. 

These claims go through the U.S. Office of Special Counsel and the Merit Systems Protection Board rather than through state court under Section 740. A whistleblower attorney helps identify which framework applies to your specific employment situation.

Talk to a NYC Whistleblower Lawyer About Your Retaliation Case

Speaking up about illegal activity at work takes a certain amount of nerve. Watching your employer retaliate against you for doing it changes the equation entirely. 

New York's whistleblower protections exist specifically to make sure that the law backs up employees who make protected disclosures in good faith.

At Mizrahi Kroub LLP, we represent New York employees who reported illegal conduct and faced consequences for it. We review the facts of your situation, identify every statute that may protect your disclosure, and lay out your options in plain terms. 

For many whistleblower cases, we work on a contingency basis, meaning you pay nothing unless we obtain a recovery for you.

You already took the hardest step by speaking up. Now let a whistleblower lawyer handle what comes next. Call Mizrahi Kroub LLP at (212) 595-6200.

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