Our Team
Jason
Zuckerman
Washington, District of Columbia
Principal
Jason Zuckerman, Principal
Recognized by
Washingtonian Magazine as a "Top Whistleblower Lawyer,"
Jason Zuckerman has litigated more than fifty whistleblower
retaliation, qui tam, and wrongful discharge cases. He also
litigates civil rights, discrimination, non-compete, and
unpaid overtime actions in federal and state courts. He has
lectured
extensively on whistleblower law and employment law,
especially on Sarbanes-Oxley and False Claims Act actions,
and has written several articles
on whistleblower protections. Mr. Zuckerman co-authored a
chapter on litigating whistleblower cases for
Whistleblowing: The Law of Retaliatory Discharge (BNA
Books)
and drafted a chapter on the D.C. Whistleblower Protection
Act for the D.C. Practice Manual.
Mr. Zuckerman has appeared on
radio broadcasts and has been quoted in various newspaper
articles and legal periodicals, including Financial
Times, The National Law Journal, BNA's Daily Labor Report,
Investment Adviser Week, HR Magazine, TaxAnalysts, Richmond Times-Dispatch, Houston
Chronicle, New Jersey Law Journal, cyberFEDS, HR Executive,
Workforce Management, CCH’s Labor and Employment
Law,
and other print and electronic media. Mr. Zuckerman has
helped draft whistleblower protection laws on the federal
and state level and works with various public interest
organizations to strengthen and expand whistleblower
protection laws. Recently, Mr. Zuckerman testified before
the D.C. Council about recommendations to strengthen the
D.C. Whistleblower Protection Act and briefed Congressional
staffers about corporate whistleblower protections. Several
cases that Mr. Zuckerman litigated have set important
precedent concerning the scope of whistleblower protection
laws, and a federal judge recently cited one of Mr.
Zuckerman's articles in an opinion concerning the scope of
protected conduct under the whistleblower provision of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Mr. Zuckerman is rated a 10 out of 10 by
Avvo.
Mr. Zuckerman serves as
Co-Chair of the National Employment Lawyers Association's
Whistleblower Committee and Co-Chair of the Whistleblower
Committee of the District of Columbia Bar's Labor and
Employment Section. In addition, Mr. Zuckerman serves on
Law360’s Employment Editorial Advisory Board and on the
Government Accountability Project’s Advisory Committee, and
is active in the American Bar Association Section of Labor
and Employment Law's Subcommittee on the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
of 2002, the Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers
Association, and the Prettyman-Leventhal American Inn of
Court.
Mr. Zuckerman graduated Phi
Beta Kappa and magna cum laude from Georgetown University
and received his law degree from the University of Virginia,
where he served as Articles Editor of the Virginia
Journal of Law and Technology. In law school, he
received the University of Virginia School of Law's Pro Bono
Award for his advocacy on behalf of prison inmates and
mentally disabled individuals. He is admitted to practice
before the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia bars,
the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of
Appeals for the Second and Fourth Circuits, the United
States District Court for the District of Columbia, the
United States District Court for the Eastern District of
Virginia, and the United States District Court for the
District of Maryland.
Publications
Co-Author: “Representing
Whistleblowers in Adler Wrongful Discharge Actions,”
Maryland Bar Journal (July 2009).
Co-Author:
"Questions and Answers About the Qui Tam Provision of the
False Claims Act,” The Practical Lawyer (June 2009)
Co-Author:
“Strategies
for Defending Against Non-Compete Litigation,” Virginia
State Bar’s Litigation News (June 2009).
Co-Author: “DOL
ARB Decision Reinvigorates Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower
Protection,” 7 Workplace L. Rep. (BNA) No. 475 (April 3,
2009).
Author: "D.C. Whistleblower Protection
Act," a chapter in the D.C. Practice Manual (D.C. Bar
Publications).
Co-author, “Blowing
the Whistle on Tax Fraud Reaps Rewards,” SmartPros
Ethics & Compliance Insights (March 2009).
Co-Author: "Stimulus Fund Safeguards for Whistleblowers,"
Law360 (February 2009).
Contributing Author: "2009
Annual Update on the Whistleblower Provisions of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002," American Bar Association
Section of Labor and Employment Law Subcommittee on the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (February 2009).
Contributing Author: “The Insider: Legal Ethics in
Whistleblower Cases,” Fairfax Bar CLE 2009.
Author: "The
Financial Crisis: Whistleblowers Could Have Helped Avert It,"
Ethics Today (October 2008)
Co-author: "New Protections for Consumer Safety
Whistle-blowers," American Bar Association Section of Labor
and Employment Law Newsletter Vol. 37, No. 1 (Fall 2008)
Co-Author: "Win
for Whistleblowers," National Law Journal
(September 8, 2008)
Co-Author: "The Umpires Strike Back",
Legal Times (June 2008)
Co-Author, "Protecting the Whistleblower,"
Corporate
Responsibility Officer (February 2008)
Contributing Author: "2008
Annual Update on the Whistleblower Provisions of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002," American Bar Association
Section of Labor and Employment Law Subcommittee on the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (February 2008).
Co-author: "Seven Questions For
Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblowers To Ask," The Practical Lawyer
(October 2007)
Author: "SOX's Whistleblower
Provision–Promise Unfulfilled," Securities Litigation
Reporter Vol. 4, Issue 7 (July/August 2007).
Author: "Six Steps to Limiting
Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower Liability," IT Business Edge
(January 16, 2007).
Contributing Author: "2007
Annual Update on the Whistleblower Provisions of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002," American Bar Association
Section of Labor and Employment Law Subcommittee on the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (February 2007).
Author: "Representing
Whistleblowers," The Docket (November 2006).
Co-author: "Protect
the Whistleblower," National Law Journal (June 19,
2006).
Contributing Author: "2006
Annual Update on the Whistleblower Provisions of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002," American Bar Association
Section of Labor and Employment Law Subcommittee on the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (February 2006).
Co-author: "Litigating Whistleblower
Cases," a chapter in
Whistleblowing: The Law of Retaliatory Discharge (BNA
Books 2004).
Author: "Whistleblower
Protections in the Nonprofit Sector," Nonprofit Risk
Management Center (September 2005).
Contributing Author: "2005
Annual Update on the Whistleblower Provisions of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002," American Bar Association
Section of Labor and Employment Law Subcommittee on the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (January 2005).
Co-Author: "Litigating
Whistleblower Cases Before the DOL from the Employee's
Lawyer's Perspective," course material for the August
2005 ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law's Annual
Meeting and for a December 2004 District of Columbia Bar
program titled "Litigating Whistleblower Complaints Before
the U.S. Department of Labor.
Author: "Complying
with Sarbanes-Oxley's Document Destruction Provisions,"
Association Management (July 2004).
Author: "Whistleblower
Protection Programs for Associations," Association
Management (June 2004).
Author: "Minimizing
the Risk of Whistleblower Retaliation Claims," TransLaw
(Spring 2004).
Speaking Engagements
Panelist: “Changing Currents in Employment
Law: Recent Developments Update,” D.C. Bar CLE, June 18,
2009
Panelist: “New Whistleblower Protections
for Government Contractors and Employees of State and Local
Governments,” D.C. Bar, April 6, 2009
Panelist: “New Whistleblower Protection:
The McCaskill Amendment to the Economic Stimulus Bill,”
ALI-ABA Teleseminar, March 17, 2009
Panelist: “Using OSHA Laws to Remedy
Retaliation,” National Whistleblower Assembly, March 8, 2009
Panelist: “Whistleblower Law
Symposium,” Institute of Continuing Legal Education in
Georgia, March 4, 2009
Panelist: “The Insider: Legal Ethics in
Whistleblower Cases” Fairfax Bar CLE, February 5, 2009
Panelist: "Inside the Whistleblower
Experience," Ethics Resource Center, December 8, 2008.
Panelist: “The Insider: Legal Ethics in
Whistleblower Cases” Fairfax Bar CLE, February 5, 2009
Panelist: "Litigating Whistleblower
Retaliation Claims Before DOL," National Whistleblowers
Center Seminar on "Whistleblower Protections in the Consumer
Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008," November 21, 2008
Panelist: "Update on Whistleblower Legislation,"
Representing Workers in Harassment & Retaliation Claims CLE,
National Employment Lawyers Association, October 17-18,
2008
Panelist: "The Emerging Era in
Whistleblower Rights and the Public's Right to Know,"
Sponsored by Government Accountability Project & American
University Washington College of Law, June 23, 2008
Panelist: "Litigating Whistleblower
Retaliation Cases," D.C. Bar Labor and Employment Section,
May 19, 2008
Panelist: "Corporate Whistleblower
Protections," Joint Congressional Forum: Congress at the
Crossroads for Your Rights sponsored by Government
Accountability Project and International Association of
Whistleblowers, May 12, 2008
Panelist: "Litigating Qui Tam Cases Under
the False Claims Act," D.C. Bar CLE, June 12, 2007
Panelist: "Litigating False Claims Act
Retaliation Claims," Metropolitan Washington Employment
Lawyers Association, May 17, 2007
Panelist: "Fraud and Corporate
Whistleblowing: False Claims Act, Qui Tam, IRS and SOX, The
ABC's of a Successful Whistleblower Case," National
Whistleblower Center, May 16, 2007
Panelist: "Hot SOX: What's New Under the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act," Representing Workers In Whistleblower &
Retaliation Actions CLE, National Employment Lawyers
Association, March 12, 2007
Panelist: "Litigating Whistleblower
Cases," Annual Maryland Employment Lawyers Association
Training Seminar, September 30, 2006
Panelist: "At-Will Employment," D.C.
Chamber of Commerce Employer Advocate Program Training
Seminar, September 6, 2006
Panelist: "Sarbanes-Oxley's Whistleblower
Provisions," Metropolitan Washington Employment Lawyers
Association," May 18, 2006
Panelist: "Conducting Internal
Investigations," D.C. Chamber of Commerce Employer Advocate
Program Training Seminar, April 2006
Panelist: "SOX Whistleblower Claims: Key
Developments and Emerging Issues," D.C. Bar Labor and
Employment Section, April 16, 2006
Panelist: "ABA Section of Litigation CLE,
Sarbanes-Oxley: Update on Recent Court Decisions," ABA
National Live Audio Webcast, April 11, 2006
Panelist: "Employment Law 101," NCAPA
Annual Education Conference, October 2005
Panelist: "Litigating Whistleblower
Cases," Whistleblowers for an Honest, Efficient, and
Accountable Government, September 23, 2005
Guest Lecturer, University of Virginia
School of Law, "Whistleblower Protections," April 2005
Panelist: "Employee Concerns Investigations: Navigating the
Minefield," Employee Concerns Program Forum Conference,
February 2005
Panelist: "Litigating Whistleblower Cases Before the
Department of Labor," Prettyman-Leventhal American Inns of
Court, January 2005
Panelist: "Procedures Governing Sarbanes-Oxley Whistleblower
Retaliation Claims," Bar Association of the District of
Columbia Section on Labor and Employment, November 2004
Panelist: "Sarbanes-Oxley's Whistleblower Protection
Provisions," D.C. Chamber of Commerce Employer Advocate
Program, May 2004