Where can I get legal advice on whether or not my termination was legal?
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Where can I get legal advice on whether or not my termination was legal?
I want to know if it was handled in the right way.
Asked on August 19, 2015 under Employment Labor Law, New Jersey
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 8 years ago | Contributor
You get legal advice from an attorney, of course if you believe you may have been fired wrongfully, you should speak with an employment law attorney in detail.
Broadly speaking, if you did not have an employment contract, you were an "employee at will." If you were an employe at will, you could be fired at any time, for any reason, or for no reason at all e.g. your supervisor had a bad day and just wanted to take it out on someone. If you were an employee at will, it is only illegal or wrongful termination if
1 You were fired because of a protected characteristic illegal workplace discrimination. The main protected characteristics are race, religion, age over 40, sex, and disability--you can't be fired for those reasons. That doesn't meant that, for example, a 55-year old disabled, African American Muslim woman can't be fired...just that she can't be fired because she is i.e due to being a 55-year old disabled African American Muslim woman.
2 You were fired for bring to light some legal violation e.g. crime or significant safety violation--i.e. you were fired for being a whistle-blower.
Other than 1 or 2 if you did not have a written employent contract, your termination was, unfortuantely, most likely legal. If you had an employment contract, you could not be terminated except in concordance with or pursuant to your contract. If your contract was violated, you could bring a breach of contract lawsuit.
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