Connie focuses her practice on whistleblower, trade secrets, government contractors and employee mobility counseling and litigation. She frequently conducts confidential internal investigations involving executive-level employees, including alleged fraud, theft or misuse of company data, trade secrets, sexual harassment and code of conduct violations. She routinely counsels, investigates and litigates restrictive covenant and trade secrets disputes between employers and former employees.
Connie has defended complex whistleblower, trade secrets and restrictive covenant litigation across the United States, including claims brought under Sarbanes-Oxley, Dodd-Frank, the False Claims Act and other federal and state employment and whistleblower provisions. Connie also advises clients regarding the development and implementation of effective whistleblower and business ethics policies and programs, the investigation of whistleblower complaints, and the handling of current employees who have “blown the whistle.”
Additionally, Connie advises federal government contractors and subcontractors on the many unique employment, affirmative action and other compliance issues that arise in the government contracts setting, including:
- Investigating and defending False Claims Act and other whistleblower complaints
- Conducting internal EEO and pay equity audits and investigations
- Advising contractors and subcontractors with respect to all aspects of Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), Service Contract Act (SCA), and Davis-Bacon Act compliance and defending OFCCP and Department of Labor audits and enforcement proceedings
Clients Connie represent include domestic and multinational organizations in the defense, energy, technology, food service, professional services, real estate and health care industries.
A frequent speaker on a variety of labor and employment, litigation and government contractor compliance issues, Connie regularly speaks at programs, seminars and training conferences concerning the whistleblower provisions of the FCA, SOX and Dodd-Frank, OFCCP compliance, pay equity issues, steps employers should take to address the #metoo movement, sexual harassment and whistleblower policies and investigations, and the development and use of forensic data in litigation. She presents at national conferences and conventions concerning these and other topics, including the American Bar Association Annual Conference, the Industry Liaison Group and the Urban Land Institute. She has been quoted on these and other topics by the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, Legal Times, Compliance Weekly, Law360, Corporate Counsel, Bloomberg Law, Bloomberg Business Week, SHRM, HR Drive, ACC and Human Resources Executive.
Connie is the author of Sarbanes-Oxley: A New Whistle Stop for Whistleblowers published in the Labor Lawyer. She authors chapters regarding employment law for the D.C. Bar Manual and is the author of Chamber’s Regional Guide: Employment Law – District of Columbia.
More Legal and Business Bylines From Connie N Bertram
- OFCCP Offers Compliance Guidance For Focused Reviews - (Posted On Thursday, June 13, 2019)
- OFCCP Issues its First Opinion Letter Regarding Pell Grants - (Posted On Friday, June 07, 2019)
- OFCCP Plans Three Proposed Rulemakings in 2019 - (Posted On Thursday, June 06, 2019)
- Tenth Circuit Confirms that Compliance Employees Must Satisfy Heavier Burden to Obtain FCA Whistleblower Protection - (Posted On Tuesday, May 14, 2019)
- OFCCP Proposes Updates to Scheduling, Compliance Check, and Focused Review Letters - (Posted On Thursday, April 25, 2019)
- Law Firms: Are You Ready for OFCCP to Come Knocking? - (Posted On Thursday, April 11, 2019)
- EEO-1 Update: EEOC Requires Employers to Submit Pay Data By September 30, 2019 - (Posted On Monday, April 08, 2019)
- OFCCP Releases Corporate Scheduling Announcement List Online - (Posted On Monday, March 25, 2019)
- EEOC Not Yet Requiring Pay Data with EEO-1 Submissions, But Uncertainty Remains - (Posted On Wednesday, March 20, 2019)
- EEOC Not Requiring Pay Data with EEO-1 Submissions for Now, But Uncertainty Remains - (Posted On Tuesday, March 19, 2019)
Connie Bertram, an Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) compliance attorney at Polsinelli, keeps National Law Review readers informed of federal government contractor and subcontractor employment and affirmative action compliance issues. Ms. Bertram's thought leadership analysis covers the False Claims Act, whistleblowers and whistleblowers' defense, and internal pay equity audits, among other important government contractor and subcontractor legislation viewpoints.