If you have been terminated for the wrong reasons, you may be eligible to sue your employer and collect certain “damages”, or the money awarded to you by the jury. However, winning such a case requires a lot of hard work, dedication, and a team of legal professionals who is capable of pulling off such a thing.
Here is what you can do when terminated wrongfully, and what you should do right away.
Contact An Attorney
Seeking legal help is your first and the most important decision. You need someone who knows what to do, someone with enough experience in handling similar cases. Someone like our California Wrongful Termination Attorneys. Once you contact them, you will be given a chance to schedule a free consultation and explain what happened. If they believe that you were wrongfully terminated, you will be advised on what to do next.
The key here is to confirm with a legal representative that you were indeed wrongfully terminated. Once that bridge is crossed, many more will follow for sure. Only this time, you will have someone to guide you and protect your best interests.
Understanding The Damages
People are normally being terminated for the wrong reasons, such as:
- Discrimination
- Retaliation
- Premature end of the contract
- Cut of wages
- Whistleblowing
Your best bet after losing your job is to understand what you can be compensated for. This is where attorneys come in play. Understanding what “damages” are in this case can help you seek a higher compensation/settlement. There are several types of damages you can get compensated for:
- Lost pay
- Lost benefits
- Emotional distress
- Attorney’s fees
- Punitive damages (punishing the employer and deterring any similar behavior in the future)
Lost Wages
From the moment you were terminated for the wrong reasons, you started losing wages. Lost wages are considered based on the average wages that you were “supposed to receive” if still working. Normally, you will not be compensated for all of your lost wages (usually it is around 60 to 80 percent). But, getting anything is much better than getting nothing.
Benefits
Losing benefits involves:
- Loss of pension or 401k plans
- Loss of medical
- Loss of dental insurance
- Loss of stock options
- Loss of profit sharing
This all happened because you got terminated. Everything can be calculated and put in your wrongful termination claim. Contact our Los Angeles Wrongful Termination Attorneys and let them help you calculate the full value of your losses.
Pain and Suffering
It is not always a safe bet, but in some cases, you can ask the jury to award you damages for everything you have endured emotionally since the day you got terminated. If enough reasonable evidence is provided, you may just get these damages added to your total settlement. It never hurts to ask.
Attorney Fees
In some cases, you may be awarded attorney’s fees. However, this is rarely the case as most attorneys work on a contingency fee basis. Consult with your attorney to learn more about it.
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