Our experienced attorneys work as your partner to develop winning negotiation strategies and tactics that close deals successfully. From serving as a behind-the-scenes, invisible resource (so that your employer, or prospective new employer, does not know you are working with us), to working out front and at the table negotiating on your behalf, our attorneys are your advocates, fighting hard to help you attain your professional and personal and goals.
new job offers + Negotiation
We routinely advise clients with new job offers, and help them negotiate to secure more favorable contract terms and enhanced compensation, including all forms of stock options, restricted stock units and incentive compensation. We represent executives of both publicly-traded and privately-held corporations. Whether our attorneys are out front advocating on your behalf, or behind the scenes guiding your job offer conversations, we understand how to present an "ask" in a way that can maximize your leverage --getting you the pay and perks that you have worked so hard to achieve.
Employment contracts
Whether you have received a new employment contract or you are seeking legal help to enforce an existing one, our knowledgeable attorneys are here to strategize ways to make the contract terms favorable for you. Our attorneys use their experience on both sides of the table -- as former in-house corporate attorneys, as well as advocates for the rights of individuals -- to fight for the contract terms that you want, with the pay, perks, protections and job security you need. You can sleep better, knowing you had help advocating for your best interests.
Severance, Change of Control + Termination
Coming to the end of an employment relationship can be a stressful and difficult time. Our attorneys have represented over 3,000 employees, and are very experienced in fighting to present your side of the story, and advocating for a severance package that meets your needs. We also are knowledgeable when it comes to complicated Change of Control matters, and help executives navigate these waters to their advantage. Choosing an attorney with the right experience during these tense times can make a huge difference when it comes to getting the pay and benefits you deserve through a negotiated severance.
DISCRIMINATION
Employment decisions about hiring, promotion or termination, or which create a hostile work environment, can give rise to claims for illegal discrimination based upon factors such as age, sex, pregnancy, race, color, national origin, religion, disability, veterans status, or in some cases, sexual orientation. Our attorneys can help you assess claims that you may have for monetary damages, or other types of legal relief, and to present them in a way that is heard, improving your chances for expedient and effective resolution.
POST-EMPLOYMENT RESTRICTIVE COVENANTS
We live in a business world where competition between two entities can be a game of inches. Your firm may view the information and knowledge you have gleaned from your time with them as a dangerous asset if you choose to leave. However, our attorneys understand that firms often look to enforce these restrictions out of fear, not fact. We work to reasonably revise non-competes and non-solicitations, both going in to a new job or upon an exit, to make them acceptable, and fair to you and your career.
Wrongful Termination
Although most employment is “at will,” it is still illegal to discriminate on the basis of legally-protected factors such as: age, sex, pregnancy, race, color, national origin, religion, disability, veterans status or in some cases sexual orientation. If you believe that adverse actions are being taken against you on the basis of any of these factors, our experienced and knowledgeable attorneys can help you assess the situation, analyze your options for next steps, and then fight to right that wrong.
Retaliation
Often workers, in good faith, report workplace concerns to their employers. If you report discrimination, harassment, fraud, pay violations, or other illegal activities, the law says that your employer cannot retaliate – meaning to take adverse action – against you. Examples of retaliation could be excluding you from meetings or work events, taking away work responsibilities, passing you over for a promotion, giving you a poor performance rating that is not merited by the facts, giving you undesirable work assignments, suspending you without pay or otherwise unfairly disciplining you, or even terminating your employment. Our attorneys have been recognized by our clients and our peers for our successful work obtaining redress for employees, including victims of unlawful retaliation.
Human REsources Consulting
Our attorneys provide a broad range of human resources consulting services, with HR expertise that can help your organization succeed. We primarily serve the private equity community in the areas of HR due diligence related to acquisitions, successful on-boarding of employees, workforce planning and aligning employees with the needs of the organization, legal compliance matters, policy development and training, performance management, talent acquisition and retention, compensation and workplace investigations.
Performance improvement + job coaching
Making the decision to ask for help with your performance at work can be difficult - employees often feel alone and that the odds are stacked against them. Our approach to performance improvement and job coaching is seeded in empowering the employees that call upon our help: preparing written and verbal responses on your behalf to the company, preparing you for meetings, and developing you into a stronger and more confident employee. We can advocate for you directly with your employer, or work invisibly behind the scenes.
WAGE, Bonus + COMMISSION CLAIMS
Federal and state laws require that employees must be paid for all hours worked. Questions often arise as to what are "earned wages," including overtime pay, sales commissions and bonus payments. For executives, even unvested stock options, restricted stock units and other types of incentive compensation could be subject to these claims. Our attorneys help you collect pay and other benefits owed under state and federal law and employer benefit plans.
WHISTLE-BLOWER CLAIMS
A person who alerts legal authorities, or higher-ups within the company, to an employer's violations of laws, rules or regulations is called a "whistle-blower." If you have good reason to believe your employer is engaging in unlawful actions -- or that you are being retaliated against for raising your concerns to your employer -- our attorneys can help you assess the situation and provide options for recovery.
SEXUAL HARASSMENT
Sexual harassment is a form of discrimination that includes unwelcome sexual advances or touching, demands for sexual favors to keep your job or to get a promotion, being exposed to lewd or offensive comments about you or your co-workers, crude jokes, sexually explicit photos or other communications or actions that create a hostile or intimidating work environment based upon sex. Harassment can involve men harassing women, women harassing men, or same sex harassment. We help you fight back against illegal harassment, and obtain recovery for lost pay and benefits, the emotional distress you suffered, as well as any other damages available under the law.