What is Wrongful Termination?

Wrongful Termination is a  situation in which an employee’s contract of employment has been terminated by the employer if the termination breaches one or more terms of the contract of employment, or a statute provision in employment law. It follows that the scope for wrongful dismissal varies according to the terms of the employment contract, and varies by jurisdiction. The absence of a formal contract of employment does not preclude wrongful dismissal in jurisdictions in which a de facto contract is taken to exist by virtue of the employment relationship. Terms of such a contract may include obligations and rights outlined in an employee handbook. Being terminated for any of the items listed below may constitute wrongful termination

 An well known example is In 2008, Paul Blakeslee worked for Shaw Environment and Infrastructure, a full-service contractor for environmental and infrastructure projects worldwide. Blakeslee was managing over 40 employees working on a $100+ million contract to maintain facilities at Fort Richardson and Fort Wainwright in Alaska.  When Blakeslee learned that Shaw’s Alaska project manager owned one-third of another private company that was leasing about $2 million in equipment to Shaw, often without competitive bidding, he decided to write a letter to Shaw’s CEO reporting what he believed to be fraud.According to the lawsuit, Blakeslee said the project manager found out about the planned letter Blakeslee was writing to the company’s CEO and threatened to lay him off.  That exchange happened on a Friday and the following Monday, the company terminated him, telling him they were eliminating his position to save money.

Merson Law has built a trusted reputation representing people who have suffered from wrongful terminations. The team at Merson Law has extensive experience litigating cases valued in excess of $1 million and much of their background includes prosecuting cases that have resolved for more than $10 million. If you need our help, contact us now for a free consultation.