Frequently Asked Questions
We have categorized our most frequently asked questions into the following sections for your convenience. If you have additional questions or need more information about your issue, please contact us for a free case evaluation.
How does a lawsuit work?
Often clients have many questions about how the legal process works. The following chronology explains how a lawsuit may typically work, although many factors may affect this timeline. Keep in mind that the process often varies from case to case depending on the number of parties, factual issues, legal issues and the overall complexity of the matter.
The California Labor Code states that all employees are assumed to be “at will.” This means that you or your employer may end the employment relationship for any reason at any time, even without warnings or serious performance problems. At-will employees are different from contract employees, whose contracts (often, a union agreement) may specify the conditions and circumstances under which a company may terminate the worker.
If you receive a salary as a coder or programmer in California, you may not be exempt from overtime.
Sexual harassment is unwelcome sexual conduct in the workplace, whether it is physical or verbal. Verbal harassment that is offensive, hostile or intimidating can be a common form of sexual harassment. It can affect an employee just as seriously as physical harassment.
There are many forms of verbal harassment that can be considered sexual harassment. Some examples are offensive jokes of a sexual nature, unwanted sexual advances, excessive and unwelcome flirting, requests for sexual favors, suggestive or obscene emails and derogatory comments in a sexual context.
Regardless of whether the harassment is severe or pervasive or not, employers can never terminate an employee in retaliation for complaining about any perceived sexual harassment.
Temporary workers are covered by the same employment laws as other workers even though they may be hired on a seasonal or short-term basis. They are sometimes misclassified as independent contractors and denied their rights as employees due to the project-oriented nature of their work.
A temporary employee may file a discrimination claim if their employer discriminates against them on the basis of their membership in a protected class, such as age, sex, race, religion, disability or medical condition, national origin or pregnancy. A temporary employee is usually supplied to an employer via a temporary agency. Depending on the specific facts of a case, both the temp agency and the employer that leased the employee can be held liable for workplace discrimination under the Fair Employment and Housing Act if they knew about the discrimination and failed to take immediate action against it.
A worker’s status as an employee may affect their ability to file various discrimination lawsuits against the employer, in addition to the temp agency. The main factor used to determine the employer’s liability is a “right to control” test. The test is similar to the one used to establish a worker’s independent contractor status. A temporary worker may effectively become a leasing company’s employee for legal purposes if the leasing company is found to exercise significant control over the way tasks are accomplished.
While getting yelled at by an employer or supervisor all day long may be unpleasant, such behavior does not necessarily provide grounds for a harassment lawsuit unless it falls under a legally-defined hostile work environment. A “hostile work environment” is a legal term that refers to verbal or physical harassment in the workplace against certain protected classes of people.
Learn more on what constitutes a hostile work environment.
There are very specific federal and California employment laws that determine whether an employer’s actions qualify as discrimination. An employee simply experiencing unfair treatment from the employer is not enough to establish a discrimination claim.
Unfair treatment becomes unlawful if an employer discriminates against the employee based on their membership in a “protected class.”
Although it may seem difficult, the very first step in dealing with discrimination or harassment in the workplace is to talk to your employer or supervisor. Make sure your supervisor knows what is happening, assuming that he or she is not the perpetrator. This can take the form of a private meeting or in a note or memorandum. Additionally, you should approach your company’s human resources manager and inform him or her of the improper conduct. Unfortunately, many discriminatory acts go unrecognized and unpunished because the victim is not fully informing the employer that the conduct is occurring.
Read more to see what to do if you feel like you have been discriminated at work.
An employee may still have a case against their employer under the constructive discharge claim. Constructive discharge is when an employee is forced to quit their job because they were subjected to illegal working conditions that were so intolerable they felt they had no other choice.
The employee does not have to actually be fired from their job in order to have a claim. The law treats constructive discharge as an employer firing an employee rather than an employee voluntarily resigning. In order to prove a constructive discharge claim, the employee must show several factors detailed here.
Being fired out of the blue or even after getting positive performance reviews does not necessarily constitute wrongful termination. Employers are not required to give at-will employees any advance notice or warnings before firing them. That said, an employee with a good record, fired out of the blue or for a suspicious reason, may wish to consider whether the employer had an illegal, hidden motive for the termination.
Learn more if you have been fired without warning or getting a negative performance review.
Being fired from work unexpectedly can be a stressful experience that can leave a person feeling unsure about their options. Upon the termination of employment, the first step to take is to determine whether the termination is illegal. Wrongful termination occurs when an employer unfairly terminates an employee in violation of federal or California employment laws.
Read more to learn what you can do if you think you've been fired unfairly.
For the average person, a lawsuit can be very expensive. Typical expenses may include court filing fees, deposition fees, costs associated with subpoenaing witnesses and documents, expert witness fees and numerous other trial-related fees. The vast majority of our cases, including wrongful termination, discrimination, and unpaid wage cases are handled on a contingency basis where we pay for all legal expenses and recover nothing until you win. The costs of litigation should be discussed during the initial consultation with an attorney.
Illegal retaliation occurs when an employer takes some tangible action against an employee for exercising his or her rights under anti-discrimination, whistleblower or certain other laws. Retaliation could be in the form of actions that significantly harm the employee like termination, demotion, salary reduction, discipline or a negative performance review.
Both federal and California law protects employees from retaliation when they participate in legally “protected activities.” Learn more about what constitutes an protected activity and what you need to do to file a claim here.
An employee may be able to file a wrongful termination lawsuit if they are fired for complaining about their employer’s illegal conduct and not for some other, legitimate reason. Federal and California laws offer employees protection from retaliation when they participate in “legally protected activities” such as:
- Complaining about discrimination or sexual harassment
- Exercising their rights under wage and overtime laws
- Participating in investigations
- Protesting unsafe working conditions
- Reporting illegal conduct by the employer or its managers
Learn more on what you should do if you have been fired for reporting illegal activities at work.
Case Studies

Wrongful Termination
Our client was wrongfully terminated after taking medical leave for a serious illness during her pregnancy. We successfully won compensation for lost wages, medical expenses and emotional distress.
MORECase Studies

Sexual Harassment
A dental hygienist was fired after complaining about unwanted sexual remarks. We won compensation for lost wages due to the termination, and damages for severe emotional distress.
MORECase Studies

Wages & Overtime
Our attorneys were able to win a substantial amount of overtime pay plus unpaid commissions for a salesperson incorrectly classified as exempt from overtime.
MORECase Studies

A cashier was refused accommodation for her injury and then fired after she needed medical leave for back surgery. We were able to resolve her vase quickly with a substantial settlement.
MORECase Studies

We were able to obtain a $1.95 Million in a class action for unpaid wages, misclassification of gig-economy workers.
MORESEEN ON



