On Feb. 6, 2017, in a closely-watched case with potentially resounding implications for publicly-traded companies, a California jury awarded $5.92 million in doubled back wages and $5 million in punitive damages to Sanford Wadler, the former general counsel of Bio-Rad Laboratories. See Wadler v. Bio-Rad Labs., No. 15-cv-2356 (N.D. Cal.).
Wadler’s hefty award followed a trial in which he argued that Bio-Rad terminated him in retaliation for bringing potential violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act to the attention of the audit committee of the company’s board of directors, conduct expressly required by Sarbanes-Oxley’s “up-the-ladder” reporting requirement. On top of Wadler’s damages, Bio-Rad, pursuant to Dodd-Frank’s and Sarbanes-Oxley’s fee-shifting provisions, must pay Wadler’s attorney fees and costs totaling $3.5 million—all after spending significant amounts to defend against Wadler’s claims, investigate the alleged FCPA violations that Wadler disclosed, and present the findings of that investigation to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice.
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