Case Results
$2.8 Million settlement for a workplace sexual harassment and retaliation case.
Erlich Law Firm recently obtained a $2.8 million settlement for a client in a sexual harassment and retaliation case against a large tech company. Our client, a former employee of the Silicon Valley firm, was wrongfully terminated in retaliation for trying to stop the harassing behavior. Erlich Law Firm, along with co-counsel, was able to recover substantial compensation for our client for the emotional distress she suffered because of the harassment and wrongful termination.
Case Results
$5.5 Million in a wrongful termination/family medical leave violation case.
$2 Million in a racial discrimination case.
$1.95 Million in a class action suit for unpaid wages and misclassification of gig-economy workers.
$1.2 Million in a sexual harassment case.
$1.1 Million in a disability/pregnancy discrimination & wrongful termination case.
$850,000 in a government whistleblower retaliation case.
$725,000 in a disability discrimination case.
Case Studies
Sexual Harassment
A supervisor in the Orange County Public Defender’s office sent a sexually explicit text/GIF to his female subordinate, our client. He waited 10 minutes for a response and then called telling her it was meant for a friend and to delete it (He later claimed at trial that it was meant for his wife). The following months, the supervisor began to intimidate and threaten our client. About 3 months after receiving the message, the employee reports the supervisor to Human Resources. A few months later, the Public Defender sent out an email stating that our client was “not a trustworthy reporter,” to make careful note of what she says, and to have witness while talking to her. The jury voted unanimously 12-0 and awarded our client $1 million in emotional distress damages and $237,854 in lost wages for harassment and retaliation.
Disability Discrimination
A FinTech company, with an unqualified HR department with no policies or procedures and no training for HR employees on accommodating disabled employees terminated a 4-year employee who asked for a simple accommodation of working from home. The employee asked to work remotely to address his foot problem (which limited his ability to drive for long periods), but was told no accommodation would be provided, forced onto a medical leave, and then fired two days after trying to come back to work. The company agreed to a settlement of $725,000.
Wrongful Termination and Pregnancy Discrimination
After working hard at a major grocery chain for almost 15 years, our client was seen as a great employee by her managers. In 2014, she became pregnant and went on maternity leave. Directly after, she was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder that required additional medical leave to deal with both the pregnancy and the serious disease. Our client kept her company informed of her conditions, sent doctors notes and emphasized how eager she was about coming back once her health was better. The company’s HR department sent a termination letter to the wrong address even though she had been in regular contact with her supervisor. She did not even learn she had been fired until nearly a month later. Together, we filed a lawsuit for wrongful termination, pregnancy discrimination and disability discrimination. At trial, the jury made an award of $578,425 to compensate for her lost wages, medical expenses and emotional distress, and the company paid our attorney fees and costs.
Class Actions
A promotional model contacted us because she felt she had been misclassified as an independent contractor by her "gig-economy" employer. Although she signed up for work on a website and chose her own hours, the company made her attend mandatory unpaid trainings; give detailed instructions on how to do her work; and failed to pay any overtime. While her own claims for unpaid wages were modest, hundreds of other workers were treated the exact same way. Erlich Law Firm filed a class action suit, and based on the combined power of the claims was able to negotiate a very favorable settlement to reimburse hundreds of workers for their damages and make the company change its practices. The model who first spoke with us became a lead plaintiff in the action.
Practice Areas
Case Studies
Sexual Harassment
A dental hygienist in a Central Valley town had complained that a dentist at her practice made sexual remarks that were inappropriate in the workplace. The hygienist was dedicated to the practice, had worked there nearly ten years, and all she wanted was a workplace free from rude and suggestive comments about women. Unfortunately the dentist responded with hostility, and when she complained again to H.R. the hygienist was fired. We were able to obtain compensation for lost wages due to the termination, and damages for severe emotional distress caused by this harassing and retaliatory treatment. Also as a result of the case the dentist came under scrutiny by his institution and no longer practices there.
Medical Leave
A customer service worker for a large healthcare company developed severe carpal tunnel syndrome due to the repetitive data entry she had to do on the computer every day on the job. Although there are numerous available technologies that enable people with carpal tunnel to keep working , the company made no effort to find an accommodation for her condition and instead required her to go on medical leave, then terminated her employment. We filed suit for medical leave retaliation, failure to accommodate a disability and other claims, and were able to reach a negotiated settlement that compensated her for wages she lost due to the termination.