New York Wrongful Termination Lawyer Consultation Guide

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 How Can I Prepare for a Wrongful Termination Consultation in New York?

The best preparation for a legal consultation about wrongful termination in New York should include gathering together all of the relevant information about an individual’s former employment and the way in which it was terminated.

What Documentation and Questions Should I Prepare Before Meeting With a Wrongful Termination Lawyer?

All documentation would be of vital importance in preparing for a legal consultation in New York concerning wrongful termination. If an individual had a written employment contract, they would certainly want to bring a copy to their meeting with their lawyer.

If they had a policies and procedures manual of some type at their job, they would want to provide their lawyer with a copy of this. A manual of policies and/or procedures, perhaps provided by human resources at the company at which a person worked, could contribute to creating an implied contract regarding the terms and conditions of a person’s employment.

All written communication a person has had with their employer about their employment, e.g., email, text messages, letters, and recorded messages, could contain relevant information. In addition, the names and contact information for people who might be witnesses or other employees who may have had experiences similar to those that a person has had with an employer could be helpful to their lawyer.

A person might want to prepare a narrative about their employment from the beginning to the events that led to their termination.

Another important aspect of a wrongful termination lawyer consultation would be preparing the questions that an individual wants to ask their prospective lawyer. They would want to ask their lawyer what kind of experience they have with cases of wrongful termination.

They would ask about the fee arrangement. They would ask the lawyer how the case would proceed and what the plan for success would be. They should prepare a list of the questions they want to ask as well.

  • Breach of an Employment Contract: A firing that breaches an employment contract may be grounds for claiming wrongful termination in New York. It is not necessary that the employee have a written employment contract. Courts also recognize oral contracts or “implied” contracts.
    • For example, an employer may have created an implied contract not to terminate employees except for good cause by providing employees with a handbook listing the reasons for which employees may be fired.
    • Or an employer may tell employees that their job is secure if they refrain from doing certain things that violate company policy. If the employer fires someone in breach of these terms, it could be breach of contract. Or it might be grounds for a wrongful termination lawsuit as well.
    • A certain provision is implied in all contracts in New York and that is the “implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing.” An employer may violate this covenant in various ways, e.g., not communicating expectations explicitly or fraudulently promising job security when it did not exist.
    • Firing an employee in violation of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing could be the basis for a breach of contract or wrongful termination lawsuit.
    • A firing that violates a collective bargaining agreement might also constitute wrongful termination in New York.
  • Discrimination: Some of the traits that a person may have that are protected by federal and New York law are the following:
    • Race
    • National origin or ancestry
    • Religion
    • Gender or gender identity (including transgender or non-binary)
    • Sexual orientation
    • Age (40 years old and up)
    • Disability
    • Marital status
    • Pregnancy.
  • If a person’s employment has been terminated for a reason that is discrimination on the basis of any of these characteristics, then the termination would be wrongful. Discrimination at work is prohibited just as discrimination in other contexts violates both federal and state law.
  • Retaliation: In New York, an employee’s job may not be terminated because they exercised such rights as the right to claim worker’s compensation or to engage in whistleblowing regarding illegal activity on the job and other rights as well.
    • An individual’s employment has been wrongfully terminated if it was terminated because the individual took leave allowed by the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). A person’s employment has been wrongfully terminated if it is done because the person took leave to which they are entitled.
    • Under New York law, a court may assume that the termination of employment is wrongful if an employee is fired within 30 days of asking to use paid sick leave. The employer would have to prove that the firing was genuinely motivated by something other than the use of leave to escape a charge of wrongful termination.
  • Wage and Hour Disputes: An employer may not fire a worker because they have complained about unpaid overtime or missed breaks for rest or meals.
  • Worker’s Compensation Claim: An employer may not fire an employee because they have made a worker’s compensation claim. The employee would have to prove that, but for their worker’s comp claim, their employer would not have fired them.
  • Protections of the Federal Fair Employment and Housing Act: An employee cannot be fired in retaliation for various actions, as noted above. In addition, an employee cannot be fired because they have complained of harassment or discrimination, have asked for accommodations for disability or a religious practice or participated in an FEHA hearing.
  • Occupational Safety and Health Concerns: An employer may not fire an employee who has submitted a report of a safety violation to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. To do so would be retaliation under New York law.
  • Public Policy Violations: An employer violates public policy when they fire an employee for refusing to follow an order to do something illegal.

Can I Sue My Employer for Wrongful Termination in New York?

If a person’s employment has been terminated for a reason that is contrary to an express contract of employment or an implied contract, then they may be able to sue for breach of contract in New York. As noted above, if an individual’s employment has been terminated for a reason that is discriminatory, retaliatory, or violates public policy, they may sue their employer for wrongful termination.

In some cases, an individual may need to report unlawful termination to a state or federal agency for the agency to review and possibly investigate. For example, if a case involves discrimination, it should be reported to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC deals with these claims.

A claim that involves health or safety conditions in a workplace should be reported to the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). An individual should consult a New York employment lawyer in order to find out whether reporting a termination to a state or federal agency is required in their case.

What Makes a Wrongful Termination Case Strong? What Makes It Weak?

A strong case for wrongful termination would be a case in which clear evidence shows that an employee was fired for a reason that is not allowed by New York or federal law. For example, an employer may have supplied employees with a human resources handbook that specifies evaluation procedures and states that employees are only fired if they have failed an evaluation for objective reasons.

A weak case would be one in which there is little or no documentary evidence available to prove that the employee’s firing was discriminatory, retaliatory, or otherwise violated public policy. There might not be a written employment contract or documents that support the existence of an implied contract. If the only evidence of any kind of contract is oral, the employer could deny it.

A case might require the analysis and testimony of an expert witness. If so, it is not necessarily weak, but it may require special efforts to prove that the termination was wrongful, e.g., that it was motivated by discrimination and not fair evaluation of an employee’s job performance, or some kind of misconduct, e.g., excessive tardiness.

Much would depend on the wrongful termination evidence and whether it is solid and supports the claim that an employee’s firing was wrongful.

What Compensation Can I Recover in a Wrongful Termination Case?

New York lawyers advise us that compensation for wrongful termination in New York may range from $30,000 to $300,000. But of course, everything depends on the specific facts of an individual’s unique case, e.g., how much money the individual earned at the job.

An individual may recover money to compensate them for lost wages and benefits, lost future earnings, and their emotional distress. In rare instances in which an employer’s conduct was especially egregious and blame-worthy, the employer may have to pay punitive damages. An employee might also be able to be reinstated in their job. They may also be able to recover their attorney’s fees and costs.

When Do I Need a Lawyer for a Wrongful Termination Case in New York?

If you believe that your employment has been wrongfully terminated, you want to talk to a New York wrongful termination lawyer. LegalMatch.com can connect you to a lawyer who knows New York wrongful termination law and can review your case. Your lawyer will be able to tell you if you have a solid case, what kind of evidence you need and how to pursue the damages that would compensate you for your losses.

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