San Francisco Wrongful Termination Attorney

If you have suddenly been terminated from your employment, you might believe you have been wronged by your employer and are wondering if you have any recourse under the law to vindicate your rights. At Minnis & Smallets, we have experienced attorneys who can evaluate your situation and determine if you have a case for wrongful termination.

Making a case for wrongful termination is filled with challenges that must be overcome, starting with the fact employment in California is at will in most cases, meaning the employer has the right to terminate your employment at any time, for any or no reason, and this is true even in the case where the reason given is not fair.

However, this is not a blanket right employers have because the law also provides that an employer cannot terminate someone for an unlawful reason. There is an overlap between reasons that are both unlawful and unfair, but there are also reasons which on their face are unfair, but they are not unlawful. It can be difficult to decipher whether you were wrongfully terminated without the right legal help.

Causes of Wrongful Termination

To help in making these distinctions, the law provides specific situations under which it would be unlawful for an employer to terminate an employee, and these include the following:

• Breach of contract: If an employer makes specific promises regarding the security of your employment and/or the duration of your employment either in writing or orally but then they fail to honor or ignore those promises, then this is a violation of contract law and principles, and the employer can be held accountable by being required to honor those promises or to have you compensated for their breach of the agreement.
• Discrimination: Both federal and state laws protect employees from being discriminated against based on their ethnic background, race, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, or disability, among others. An employer cannot, therefore, terminate your employment because of any of these protected characteristics. An employer may try to disguise their true reason for firing someone if it involves any of these protected categories, but an experienced employment lawyer will know how to obtain the evidence to uncover the true reason and hold the employer accountable.
• Retaliation: This is a type of wrongful termination where an employer terminates an employee reporting or otherwise letting others know, usually law enforcement or a government agency, about the employer’s wrongdoing (commonly known as whistleblowing), for refusing to go along or to be involved in the wrongdoing, or for the employee simply standing their ground and fighting for their rights as a worker.
• Violating Employee Rights: An employer cannot terminate your employment simply because you have exercised your protected rights. For example, an employer cannot terminate your employment simply because you have asked to take medical leave to take care of a family member who is seriously ill.

Speak with a San Francisco Wrongful Termination Attorney

If you believe you have been wrongly terminated, contact Minnis & Smallets today, and one of our experienced employment law attorneys in the San Francisco area will discuss your circumstances and offer legal advice as to the best way forward.