Ameris Bank Ordered To Pay ~$79.55M In Whistleblower Retaliation Case Brought By Former Balboa Capital CEO Patrick Byrne

In a sweeping victory for employee rights and corporate accountability, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on July 27, 2026, entered final judgment awarding $79,548,170.80 — plus prejudgment and post-judgment interest, costs, and attorneys’ fees — to Patrick Byrne, the founder and former chief executive of Balboa Capital, in his landmark whistleblower retaliation and wrongful termination case against Ameris Bank (NYSE: ABCB ). The judgment follows unanimous jury verdicts returned June 11 and 12, 2026 — with the jury answering every question it reached on the 28-question special verdict form in Byrne's favor — after a two-week trial before the Honorable Michelle Williams Court. Byrne was represented at trial by Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP. The jury found Ameris Bank liable on every claim presented: wrongful termination in violation of publ...