"A new column in Legal Times underscores why Congress should finish up its bill on whistleblower protections. Legislation has passed in the House and Senate, but now needs to be reconciled before being sent to President Bush, who has already threatened a veto."
The article highlights why so many whistleblower lawsuits are doomed to die a slow and painful death. After taking their claims before administrative judges at the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB), where they almost never win their cases, whistleblowers are often forced to appeal to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. That is exactly what happened to the former Chief of the U.S. Park Police, Teresa Chambers, who appealed her case to the Federal Circuit following a ridiculous ruling by MSBP which denied Chambers whistleblower protections. Her case illustrates how patriotic truth-tellers can end up in a never-ending churn of legal contortions. Chambers was notified she would be removed from her position in December 2003, and today, in early 2008, there is still no legal resolution in her case. Although she prevailed before the Federal Circuit, her "reward" is that she is now forced to go back to the incompetent MSPB for yet another hearing of her case.
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The levels of scrutiny are here to stay (for now at least)
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Courtly Observations is a recurring series by Erwin Chemerinsky that
focuses on what the Supreme Court’s decisions will mean for the law, for
lawyers and l...
4 days ago
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