In July 2016, Sean McKessy, the first-ever Chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower, announced that he was leaving the agency. Today, whistleblower law firm Phillips & Cohen announced that McKessy will be joining the firm as a partner in its Washington, D.C. office.
McKessy was hired to start the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower in February 2011, and held that position for over five years as the Office went from non-existent to a major piece of the SEC’s enforcement program. Just last week, the agency’s awards to whistleblowers passed the $100 million mark. Commenting on that milestone, Enforcement Director Andrew Ceresney called the whistleblower program “transformative,” and emphasized that the Whistleblower Office has enabled the SEC “to bring high quality enforcement cases quicker using fewer resources.” The SEC’s Jane Norberg is Acting Chief of the Office following McKessy’s departure.
