Whistleblower Protection Laws in the Financial Markets: Lessons for Emerging Markets

33 Pages Posted: 16 Jan 2017 Last revised: 12 Jul 2021

Date Written: October 1, 2016

Abstract

This article argues that policy-makers in emerging markets with financial centers should adopt whistleblower policies and legislation in order to reduce economic crimes and protect investors. The authors chose the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”) as a case study because it is an emerging market with important regional financial centers and it has a unique legal system that uses civil law, common law and sharia law. Although the focus is on implementing a comprehensive set of whistleblower laws and policies in the UAE securities and commodities markets, the best practices that are outlined in this article are ‘transnational’ in nature, which means that the model we provide for blowing the whistle internally and externally can easily be adopted in other jurisdictions. The principles outlined in this article are particularly useful for policy-makers in emerging markets that are considering adopting whistleblower legislation. First, this article analyzes the current legal framework for protecting whistleblowers in the UAE under federal law and in Dubai under the new Dubai Economic Security Center Law. Second, it recommends that the UAE federal government adopt whistleblower legislation in order to reduce wrongdoing in their financial markets. Third, it analyzes whistleblower legislation in other jurisdictions in order to provide a comparative analysis and determine what the best practices are for protecting whistleblowers in the major financial markets of the world. In particular, this article analyzes and critiques the whistleblower legislation in the United States in order to provide a set of best practices for the UAE to adopt for their financial markets (in particular, the securities and commodities markets).

Keywords: Whistleblower Laws and Policies, Emerging Markets, United Arab Emirates, United States, SEC, CFTC, Dodd-Frank Act, Dubai Economic Security Center Law, Dubai International Financial Center

Suggested Citation

Chamorro-Courtland, Christian and Cohen, Marc, Whistleblower Protection Laws in the Financial Markets: Lessons for Emerging Markets (October 1, 2016). Arizona Journal of International and Comparative Law, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2897672

Christian Chamorro-Courtland (Contact Author)

University of Dubai ( email )

AL MAKTOOM STREET
Dubai, 14143
United Arab Emirates

Marc Cohen

Zayed University ( email )

P.O. Box 4783
Abu Dhabi
United Arab Emirates

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