Wrongful Termination Lawyer – When Should You Hire One?

Wrongful termination is a harsh reality that many have experienced. But there is no reason to take the injustice silently. Now, you can hire a lawyer to take legal action against your employer. A lawyer for wrongful termination can help you in many ways. Here’s when to hire one.

For Sound Legal Counsel

Wrongful termination can be due to a number of reasons. These can be discrimination related to gender, race, or nationality. Other reasons can be sexual harassment, pregnancy, and issues related to medical leaves, wages, and more. Employees who raise their voices against their company’s discriminatory policies are often terminated for this reason alone.

So, first, you will need to ascertain if you have a case against your employer or not. Employment laws differ from state to state. Wrongful termination is a category of employment law. So, you will need to seek counsel from a local lawyer for wrongful termination to check if your case is solid or not.

There may be a statute of limitations regarding wrongful termination laws. It may differ for each state. So, if a certain amount of time has passed since your wrongful termination then you may need to consult with a lawyer about the next legal steps you can take regarding the matter. Your case may still be viable. But only your lawyer will be able to tell you for sure.

For Filing a Claim

Filing claims for wrongful termination is never easy. Your lawyer may take into account your loss of income (due to a lack of suitable employment) since your termination. But it is not really possible to quantify humiliation, embarrassment, mental anguish, and emotional distress due to wrongful termination. Some people may even experience depression due to such a stressful situation; especially if they have been through the ordeal of sexual harassment and then terminated when they threatened to take legal action.

But an experienced lawyer for wrongful termination can help you arrive at a payout figure, which will be fair depending on your unique situation.

The lawyer will also file the necessary paperwork for the claim. Your lawyer will also deal with the representatives of the employer as they try to settle the claim. It can include negotiations that can be endless and tiring.

For Fighting the Case in Court

In case the negotiations fail, you will have the option to take the case to trial. It can happen if the claim amount is too large or if the situation is complicated such as in cases related to sexual harassment, gender discrimination, whistleblowing, termination due to an employee’s sexual orientation, etc.

The lawyer will try to gather evidence to support your case. These can be records of calls or conversations during meetings where the matter at hand was discussed. Your lawyer may also try to find witnesses to testify in your favor in the court (which is very difficult in itself). Your lawyer will also try to prevent foul play by your employer’s representatives.