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Whistleblower – Statutory Interpretation

By: Derek Hawkins//May 9, 2017//

Whistleblower – Statutory Interpretation

By: Derek Hawkins//May 9, 2017//

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WI Court of Appeals – District III

Case Name: Daniel D. Bethards

Case No.: 2016AP409

Officials: Stark, P.J., Hruz and Seidl, JJ.

Focus: Whistleblower – Statutory Interpretation

The issue presented in this WIS. STAT. ch. 227 (2013-14)1 review is whether the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development’s Equal Rights Division (“ERD”) erred when it concluded a former state employee failed to comply with the Whistleblower Protection Law, WIS. STAT. §§ 230.80-230.89. Specifically, the employee challenges as unreasonable the ERD’s interpretation of the term “supervisor” in § 230.81(1) as including only those individuals within an employee’s supervisory chain of command. He also argues his agency’s human resources director was one of his “supervisors,” or at a minimum this is a factual issue warranting an evidentiary hearing. Applying due weight deference to the ERD’s interpretation of WIS. STAT. § 230.81(1), we conclude the employee’s interpretation of that statute is not more reasonable than the ERD’s. We also conclude the ERD could reasonably determine, based on the undisputed evidence before it, that the agency’s human resources director was not a “supervisor” of the employee. We therefore reverse the circuit court’s determination to the contrary and uphold the ERD’s decision

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Attorney Derek A. Hawkins is the managing partner at Hawkins Law Offices LLC, where he heads up the firm’s startup law practice. He specializes in business formation, corporate governance, intellectual property protection, private equity and venture capital funding and mergers & acquisitions. Check out the website at www.hawkins-lawoffices.com or contact them at 262-737-8825.

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