Top Employment Lawyers

When powerful employers retaliate against employees who expose wrongdoing, they’re not just breaking the law—they’re betting you won’t fight back.

Since the first KKC partner started practicing law in 1984, the employment lawyers who founded Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto have set precedent after precendent, enhancing their rights to fight retaliation.

In 1985, KKC partner Stephen M. Kohn wrote the first ever legal treatise on how to win a retaliation case.

In 1989, Stephen along with his brother Michael Kohn, co-authored the Labor Lawyers Guide to the Rights of Whistleblowers. While writing the leading books on whistleblower law, they were winning cases and setting precedents against companies like Duke Power, KBR (now Halliburton), and Texas Utilities.

For example, in 1989-90, they rocked the whistleblower world in winning the first case ever where a whistleblower found a restrictive non-disclosure agreement (NDA) illegal while at the same time permitting the whistleblower to keep all the settlement monies they had obtained pursuant of the illegal agreement. The company lost it’s benefit of the bargain (silenced) and the whistleblower could keep the payoff.

Since then, KKC partners have won historic cases against some of the most powerful corporations in the world and various government agencies.

Although the firm is located in Washington, D.C., they’ve set precedents in the following states:

• Arizona: first hostile work environment case for a whistleblower
• Georgia: first case finding a whistleblower’s one-party taping to constitute a protected activity
• California: first case ever breaking whistleblower rights to a federal prisoner
• South Carolina: first case ever breaking whistleblower protections to an employee at an atomic weapons plant
• North Carolina: first case ever granting a federal employee the right to criticize their agency and paid expense reimbursements by NC environmental activists
• Maryland: first case ever finding that an EPA employee could succesfully sue the federal government under the Safe Drinking Water Act whistleblower law
• Texas: first case ever disqualifying a leading corporate law firm for unethical activity violating a whistleblower’s legal right
• Washington, D.C.: first SEC case under the Dodd-Frank Act finding an non-disclosure agreement (NDA) illegal.

We have aggressively litigated whistleblower retaliation cases under numerous whistleblower laws, prevailing before cases before the Department of Labor, federal courts, and even the Supreme Court of the State of South Carolina. In addition, the firm has prevailed in numorous precedings in the U.S Courts of Appeal, including the First, Fourth, Firth, Eighth, Ninth, Eleventh, and D.C. Circuits.

The Types of Employment Cases We Cover

The types of issues our employment law firm has experience with include:

• Negotiating Severance Agreements
• Retaliation
• Discrimination
• Wrongful Discharge
• Hostile Work Environment
• OSHA Whistleblower Investigations
• Illegal NDAs

The attorneys of Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto’s have an unmatched expertise in whistleblower law, having helped draft key anti-retaliation laws and having literally written the book on the subject.

In 2002, KKC lawyers proposed the historic SOX anti-relation law to Congress and worked with the Senate Judiciary Committee on the final legislation. With KKC’s first-hand knowledge of the intricacies of anti-retaliation litigation, this law laid out strong anti-retaliation protections for corporate whistleblowers.

After their groundbreaking books were published in 1985 and 1989, KKC partners have continued to write the leading handbooks and treatises on how whistleblower can win their cases. This includes Concepts and Procedures in Whistleblower Law (2000), Whistleblower Law: A Guide to Legal Protections for Corporate Employees (2004), The Whistleblower’s Handbook (2011), and most recently Rules for Whistleblowers (2023).

But we are more than just employment lawyers. As founders of the National Whistleblower Center, we have authored amicus briefs in numerous cutting-edge supreme court cases; we led the effort to enact AML Whistleblower Enhancement Act, and have consulted with consulted with congress on the language for the Dodd-Frank Act, and have been the most influential leaders in three separate SEC rulemaking proceedings under Dodd-Frank.

KKC lawyers know the laws, litigated under the laws, helped write the laws, and have written the leading books on the whistleblower laws.

Employment retaliation cases often intersect with our other practice areas, providing multiple avenues for justice and compensation:

• Qui Tam & False Claims Act: If your employer defrauded the government, you may be entitled to substantial rewards (15-30% of recovery) in addition to retaliation protection.
• SEC Whistleblower Program: Securities fraud reports can yield awards of 10-30% of sanctions over $1 million, plus anti-retaliation protection under Dodd-Frank.
• IRS Tax Whistleblower Program: Tax fraud reports may result in awards of 15-30% of collected proceeds, with strong retaliation protections under recent legislation.
• CFTC Whistleblower Program: Commodities fraud cases offer similar reward percentages and retaliation protections as SEC cases.
• Sarbanes-Oxley Act: The leading corporate whistleblower law that covers publicly-traded companies and their agents or subsidiaries.

Our multi-faceted approach means we can pursue every available remedy, often combining retaliation damages with substantial whistleblower rewards that can total millions of dollars.

If you’ve experienced an employment dispute after reporting a concern, contact our employment attorneys today for a free case evaluation. We can explain your legal rights, evaluate your claim, and determine if you qualify for protections, which may include:

• Appropriate severance and settlement agreements
• Reinstatement to your position
• Back pay and front pay compensation
• Compensatory damages for emotional distress
• Attorney fees and costs
• Punitive damages in some cases
• Awards in related actions

Our firm represents whistleblowers facing retaliation both on a contingency and an hourly-fee basis.

Our firm’s history of winning for retaliation whistleblowers dates to 1988.

Joseph J. Macktal (1988)

Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto represented Joseph J. Macktal, a journeyman electrician who was retaliated against and eventually terminated because of raising safety concerns at the KBR’s Comanche Peak nuclear power plant. Our firm successfully challenged the legality of restrictive non-disclosure agreements that corporations used to silence whistleblowers.

Howard Samuel Nunn, Jr., v. Duke Power Company (1988)

We also set a nationwide legal precedent in the case Howard Samuel Nunn, Jr., v. Duke Power Company. Duke Power expanded the scope of protected activity under the nuclear whistleblower law to include raising safety concerns with non-profit advocacy groups.

Frederic Whitehurst, FBI Lab Whistleblower (1997)

In 1997, Whitehurst testified at the House Judiciary Subcommittee hearings on the FBI Laboratory and filed a federal lawsuit claiming whistleblower retaliation. He reached a settlement with the FBI worth $1.16 million.

Linda Tripp (1998)

In the 2000s, we gained nationwide attention representing whistleblower Linda Tripp regarding her revelations of Monica Lewinsky’s involvement in the sex scandal that brought about the impeachment of President Bill Clinton.

In defense of her Constitutional Rights, Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto obtained a settlement in her Privacy Act lawsuit with the Federal Government. The DOD agreed to pay Tripp $595,000 and provide other benefits, including a retroactive increase in her pay grade.

Jane Turner, FBI Whistleblower (2002)

After reporting FBI misconduct in child sex crime cases and theft at the 9/11 crime scene, decorated FBI agent Jane Turner faced retaliation but won two separate whistleblower cases, receiving substantial damages and prompting reforms within the FBI.

Dr. Toni Savage

After facing retaliation for exposing millions of dollars worth of fraud in the Army Corps of Engineers, Dr. Savage won a landmark retaliation case before the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) which established that federal employee whistleblowers can raise hostile work environment claims.

Bunny Greenhouse

Greenhouse faced retaliation for blowing the whistle on the Army Corps of Engineers’ awarding of a massive reconstruction contract to Halliburton without competitive bidding. By deploying a novel legal theory, KKC was able to have Greenhouse’s whistleblower case combined with a discrimination case, allowing the case to proceed to federal court where she received a highly favorable settlement.

Linda Mitchell

Mitchell blew the whistle on safety concerns at a nuclear power plant and faced severe retaliation, including harassment which resulted in the deterioration of co-worker relationships and nervousness at work due to threats to keep a low profile. In the first case which applied hostile work environment claims to a nuclear whistleblower, KKC successfully obtained Mitchel compensatory damages under the Energy Reorganization Act.

William Marcus

In the first case in which a whistleblower was awarded backpay under environmental laws, KKC successfully represented William Marcus, an internationally respected Senior Science Advisor at the EPA who was fired for giving testimony which was a key factor in numerous toxic tort cases against major chemical companies.

Roger Wensil

In representing Roger Wensil, Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto was the first law firm to win a case awarding reinstatement and backpay for a whistleblower at a nuclear weapons facility. Wensil faced retaliation for blowing the whistle on illegal drug sales, safety violations, and the systemic quality failures taking place at the Savannah River Nuclear Weapons Facility that provided weapons-grade plutonium for the U.S. government.

Marvin Hobby

In a long fought, aggressively litigated case against Georgia Power Company, Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto successfully represented Marvin Hobby from the hearing phase through the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, winning Hobby reinstatement and paid damages and fees totaling more than $5 million. Hobby was fired after the accuracy of testimony they asked him to give in another whistleblower case, and separately about the legality of the corporation’s organizational structure.

Allen Mosbaugh

In another case against Georgia Power Company, Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto successfully represented Allen Mosbaugh who was fired after reporting safety concerns to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

James Bobreski

James Bobreski was retaliated against for blowing the whistle on the DC Water and Sewer Authority, who was unsafely storing over 100 tons of liquid chlorine that could have killed thousands. Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto successfully represented Bobreski obtaining a judgment which ordered the D.C. Water and Sewer Authority to pay damages plus legal fees.

Our leading whistleblower law firm has consistently won cases that have shaped whistleblower protection law.

In addition, we obtained the largest award ever given to an individual whistleblower (at the time), won numerous reward and retaliation cases, and have worked with Congress and executive agencies in drafting the laws and rules governing whistleblowers.

Our work has established crucial legal precedents protecting whistleblowers’ First Amendment rights, challenging illegal NDAs, and ensuring proper compensation for retaliation victims.

Regardless of whether you work in healthcare, hospitality, transportation, defense, technology, financial, or service industry, our attorneys have your back and will seek out the maximum compensation, protection, and justice possible.

Timeline Expectations
Every case is unique and depends on each law. Some cases resolve in months; others may take several years depending on complexity and other factors. Cases involving multiple agencies or reward programs may take longer but often yield larger recoveries.

At Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto, we’ve seen it happen too many times: dedicated employees who do the right thing by reporting fraud, safety violations, discrimination, or other workplace misconduct are met with retaliation instead of recognition.

If you’ve experienced demotion, termination, harassment, or other adverse actions after raising concerns about wrongdoing, you are not alone—and you may have powerful legal protections. Contact our firm today for a free and confidential case evaluation.

Note on Intake Process
If we are interested in your case, we will review the request, respond, and potentially assign it to one of the partners. We encourage the use of secure devices, creation of new email accounts, and avoidance of social media to protect client identity.