Pranešėjų apsauga: teisinis reguliavimas ir jo taikymo pirmieji metai Lietuvoje

Abstract

Corruption, the improper performance of duties, negligence, and other unlawful activities and/or abuses of law can be committed in both public and private organizations. These breaches of law may cause harm to the public interest to a varying extent. One of the legal means of preventing or disclosing such breaches is the reporting of such unlawful acts or omissions. Persons working in or having any other relationship with the organization concerned as a result of future, current, or former employment activities has the opportunity to report irregularities. This requires, however, effective protection of whistleblowers, which guarantees their safety and does not act as a disincentive to reporting. As regards the protection of whistleblowers at the European Union level, it was decided to take concrete legislative measures, i.e. to harmonize the existing legislation and set the minimum standards for whistleblower protection. This article discusses certain provisions of the Republic of Lithuania’s Law on the Protection of Whistleblowers and their compliance with the Directive on the Protection of Persons Reporting on Breaches of Union Law, and assesses the first year of the application of these provisions. On the basis of legal regulation, scientific doctrine, and statistics, this article analyses the following: the purpose of the Republic of Lithuania’s Law on the Protection of Whistleblowers; the concept of a whistleblower and the procedure for recognizing a person as a whistleblower; and measures of support and promotion for whistleblowers that ensure confidentiality, protection from negative impacts, remuneration, and compensation.