Employment Law and Litigation

Chicago Employment Lawyer

With years of experience in business law, Roth Fioretti also has a strong concentration in employment law. Our Chicago employment attorneys provide a wide range of employment law services to employers, businesses, and, on occasion, to employees. Federal and Illinois employment laws aim to protect employees from unsafe working conditions and unfair labor practices, while ensuring that employees also enjoy fundamental rights irrespective of position or contract duration. Complying with these laws is paramount to preventing employment disputes and protecting your business, however navigating the myriad complexities poses a challenge. To assist businesses with employment law compliance and disputes, we provide the following services:

Chicago Employment Law Services

• Drafting employment handbooks: Though not required by Illinois law, an employment handbook is a useful tool for relaying a company’s policies and procedures to employees. However, a poorly drafted employee manual may expose the business to detrimental contract claims or lawsuits. Our lawyers draft employee handbooks that succinctly communicate employee rights and responsibilities, while minimizing the business’ exposure to potential claims.
• Drafting arbitration agreements: Arbitration agreements advocate that employees and employers work together to address any dispute without the involvement of the courts. Arbitration often provides a more cost-effective and streamlined approach to resolving employee disputes than litigation. Our firm works to draft arbitration agreements that represent our clients’ interests with the goal of swift dispute resolution.
• Non-compete agreements: Non-compete agreements protect businesses by limiting the involvement of employees with competitors and preventing employees from poaching clients or customers following employment termination. We work with businesses to draft non-compete agreements that effectively protect the business’ interests.
• Drafting employment contracts: Well-crafted employment contracts balance legal compliance and protection. We help businesses by drafting employment contracts that comply with applicable federal and Illinois state laws, while safeguarding the employers’ interests.
• Drafting severance agreements: Severance agreements lay out the rights and responsibilities of both the employee and employer in the event of employment termination. While designed to protect the interests of both parties, these types of contracts must be carefully drafted to shelter the released parties from future legal action taken by a terminated employee. Our attorneys work with clients to navigate the intricacies of severance agreements, ensuring they comply with applicable laws and adequately protect all interested parties.

Employment Law Litigation Chicago, IL

When written properly, employee contracts and agreements mitigate an employer’s risk of employment disputes. However, no matter how thorough a business is in drafting these employment documents, it may still encounter employment issues that require litigation. Common employment disputes include the following:

• Workplace discrimination: Federal and state laws prevent employers from discriminating against employees based on gender, race, age, religion, disabilities, or political affiliation. Our firm handles litigation of workplace discrimination suits.
• Wrongful termination: Though Illinois is an at-will employment state, employers must ensure employees are terminated in a manner that doesn’t break the law or breach an employment contract. We provide litigation services for companies accused of wrongful termination and represent employees in employment wrongful termination suits.
• Workplace harassment: Harassment is any type of activity that makes the workplace a hostile environment for the employee, including sexual harassment, verbal harassment, offensive language, innuendo, or images, and bullying. We represent businesses in all types of workplace harassment issues.
• Retaliation due to whistle–blowing: Employees who report wrongful acts in the workplace sometimes face retaliation from other staff or even management. We assist clients with understanding whistle blower issues, representing employers in whistle blowing suits.

We help businesses of all sizes understand and navigate the complexities of employment law disputes. Roth Fioretti represents employers in litigation before the Federal EEOC, Illinois Department of Human Rights, Chicago Commission on Human Relations and in Federal and State Court proceedings. We have, on occasion, represented employees in employment discrimination actions, leading to extremely lucrative recoveries.