San Diego Wrongful Termination Firms
Your search for finding the San Diego lawyer to handle your wrongful termination case will undoubtedly take you to one of the many law firms that exist in San Diego county. You are going to want to find the best possible lawyer who will fight for your legal rights at the best possible price. But when it gets down to it, picking the right attorney is going to be hard simply because many good choices are available.
As the saying goes, the good employment lawyers are the worst enemies of the best employment lawyers. Well, it doesn’t exactly go like that - but you get the idea. Having a lot of good choices about who to fight your sexual harassment firing for you or to stand up for you in the case of a whistleblowing termination case is the worst enemy in the world of you finding the best possible attorney for the job. You will simply grow weary of searching and settle for second (though probably still good) best.
In order to help you cut down on some of those issues we thought we might help provide some advice about what we think about some of the important names in the area of law in the San Diego county area. After all, San Diego is a huge county and ranges from Oceanside and Vista in the north, all the way to Chula Vista and San Ysidro in the south, San Diego city proper, La Jolla, Del Mar, and Carlsbad in between, and goes all the way out to El Cajon and Santee in the east. This is a very big area of about 3 million individuals - do you think there might be just a few attorneys who might specialize in unfair firings? I certainly think so.
The first thing that you are going to want to do before you go out and start your search is get a little educated about what wrongful termination cases actually look like. For that, we have come up with some of the main reasons that you might want to consider hiring a wrongful termination lawyer in San Diego. We discuss some of the major issues like being the victim of sexual harassment, being discriminated against because of your beliefs, gender, race, or sexual orientation, or being fired due to leave taken for pregnancy or a family medical emergency. As is mentioned in that article, if you suffered termination of your employment for one of these reasons you will probably be able to pursue litigation because your employer probably violated state or federal law.
In that article, we also mentioned that many times what we might consider as an “unfair firing” might not be the same as a “wrongful firing.” This is an example I got from a message board on Craigslist:
I worked for a company and my supervisor assaulted me. He has been with the company for 40 years and they fired me the next day. What happened was we got in a yelling match cuz [sic] he was telling a lie on me and I called him on it. He said lets go outside cuz [sic] I guess I embarrassed him by yelling back at him and on our way out the door he pushed me and I pushed him back. I have witnesses that saw him push me first but of course the company fired me and said things just weren’t working out. I talked to one attorney but wanted some more advice or another attorney.
This firing was obviously “unfair” because both men obviously were involved in the altercation but only one of them was actually fired. But since California (and San Diego by association) is under at-will employment laws any employer or employee is able to terminate their relationship with the other for any reason at any time so long as it does not break any state or federal laws in the process.
So the real question here is can an employment law attorney or firm prove in a court of law that this man was fired “in retaliation” for the altercation he had with his supervisor or for any other wrongful reason? I think that the answer is probably no.
I have two reasons for this:
- This man said, “‘I talked to one attorney but wanted some more advice or another attorney.” This indicates to me that his lawyer, to whom he probably gave even more detail to than he does on this message board, told him that he didn’t have a chance of winning in court. His employer’s attorney could probably just point to the physical altercation as enough reason for the firing and since San Diego is an at-will employment environment that would be a perfectly legal reason to end his employment. Remember, a San Diego lawyer has a high level of incentive to take on these cases as they can be very profitable for the attorney. They are in this for the money and if they don’t think they can win your case they will tell you and you should listen to them. But get a second opinion if you want, they are usually free.
- The other reason that I don’t think that his case would stand a chance in court is that I don’t think this firing violates any federal or state anti-discrimination laws in any way. There were no rights that were violated and it could be strongly argued that the termination was not only legal, but even appropriate considering normal custom in our society. Who gets into a shoving match with a supervisor (especially one who might be in their 60s!)? Nobody! That is the stupidest thing I have ever heard in my entire life and if I was this individual’s boss I would have fired this guy for just for being an idiot. In San Diego county that is my right as an employer and I would exercise it.
With all that said, you are going to want to make sure that you understand what actually constitutes a “wrongful termination” if want to win your case. Having this basic understanding will help you better understand the legal advice given you by a lawyer who might take your case. You are the first line of responsibility when it comes to your legal matters, not your attorney. Get education on the topic and read our wrongful termination lawyer in San Diego article to better understand these principles.
Once you have figured all that out, it is time to start getting ready and finding out who you want your lawyer to be. We have also outlined what are some helpful ways to find a San Diego County Lawyer. I won’t go into those now, but what I will go into are some of the firms that specialize in employment law and especially in wrongful termination suits.
Wrongful Termination Firms
This is in no way going to be an exhaustive list of every single firm in the greater San Diego area. That would just be too long and not even worth reading. Instead, what I want offer is some of the general information about a firm or two that really makes it a point to seek out cases like the ones that you may be trying to get resolved. Remember, there are many firms and without getting information on at least a couple of them you won’t be able to find the exact legal team that meets your specific needs on both a legal as well as personal level.
The first is the Kalafer Law Corporation. This firm is run by Alexys Kalafer who has a history that might make her a unique legal representative for your case. If you are a female, you might benefit from Ms. Kalafer’s background as a nurse and as a lawyer. She specializes in personal injury cases, but also has extensive background in employment law since many personal injuries can and do occur at work.
Her feminine touch might also be particularly helpful to women who have suffered any form of sexual harassment - whether it be in the form of an inappropriate email, instant message, physical touch, or verbal comment - from any person at work. It can be embarrassing to tell someone the things said to you or the actions taken against you in violation of your personal space and rights. Sometimes it is really helpful to have a person of the same gender listen to your story as this can help you feel less like you are reliving the pain and more like you are breaking free and fighting back. This can ease the tension and make your already painful experience a little bit easier to deal with. Not all individuals experience this, but this could be your experience with the Kalafer Law Corporation.
Another benefit to this firm is that they offer free consultations on wrongful termination cases so it will cost you nothing to see if she is a lawyer who will meet your needs. Simply give her a call to set up an appointment.
This will go for many of the lawyers that deal with wrongful termination cases and employment law - free consultations appear to the norm. This is probably true because they only take the cases that they think they can win and then when the settlement comes they are handsomely rewarded for their efforts. Providing a free consultation is a great way to get people in the door so that is why they offer them. Unless you are smitten with the first attorney that you meet, chances are good that you might benefit from getting several free consultations from several different barristers to see who will provide you with the best deal possible.
The next firm on the list are the employment law litigators over at Grady and Associates. What is especially nice about these wrongful termination lawyers is that they have conveniet offices up and down the I-5 corridor at Carlsbad, Mission Valley, and Del Mar Heights. What makes this even more convenient is that when you call in for a free consulation you can use any one of three of San Diego’s many area codes (619, 760, or 858), making your call cost less (depending on your phone plane). I am highlighting this firm because of its convenience.
Another aspect of the Grady employment law firm is their level of experience. They currently have nine employment lawyers in the 15 employees employed there. Of the 9 attorneys that work in this area of case law, they have over one hundred years of experience handling cases involving employment issues. That means that on average, each lawyer has been handling wrongful termination cases and their like for at least 12 years. This level of experience is invaluable when it comes to determining if you case will have merit before a judge. They will also be able to draw upon their years of experience to ask the right questions of you to determine if you case stands a chance in court or if you are simply a victim of “unfair” termination.
Grady and Associates offers both convenience and an experience set of lawyers. You might want to consider getting your free consultation with them if they are near you home or new place of employment.
There are many more wrongful termination firms and lawyers that may meet your needs scattered all across San Diego county. Asking around to see who is a high quality, helpful, and experienced lawyer is a must. Do your own research on these attorneys and find sources that will benefit you in your search. But most of all, make sure that you meet your lawyer and make sure that you actually like them. There is nothing worse than having a San Diego lawyer who you don’t really like trying your case for you.