Atlanta Employment Lawyers

Employment Discrimination

Federal laws prohibit employers from discriminating due to your race, national origin, sex, disability, or age when making important employment decisions like hiring and firing. Notable federal employment discrimination laws include Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Harassment is one form of employment discrimination. Moreover, it is illegal for your employer to retaliate against you for engaging in a protected activity, such as filing a charge of racial discrimination, or for opposing discriminatory practices against other employees. Georgia also has anti-discrimination laws. All employers are forbidden from discriminating on the basis of age, and employers with at least 10 employees need to comply with an equal pay law.

Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment is prohibited under Title VII. Title VII applies to Georgia employers with at least 15 employees. Our Atlanta employment attorneys have brought many claims under this law. Quid pro quo harassment is one type of sexual harassment, and it involves an authority figure in the workplace conditioning an employee’s employment on submission to sexual harassment or providing sexual favors of some kind. Hostile work environment harassment exists when the harassing conduct is so severe or so pervasive that it alters the terms and conditions of employment. If you have been sexually harassed, you should let the harasser know that the conduct or words are unwelcome, and you should notify HR in writing. In order to bring a Title VII lawsuit, you must first file a charge with the EEOC. It can be wise to retain an attorney for this process.

Wage and Hour Law

We also handle wage and hour lawsuits. In Georgia, you can file a lawsuit against your employer if you were paid less than the minimum wage to recover wages that were not paid, liquidated damages, attorneys’ fees, and costs. You can also hire an employment lawyer in Atlanta to sue for an employer’s failure to pay overtime that was owed. In Georgia, a nonexempt employee must be paid 1.5 times the normal pay rate for any hours worked over 40 in a workweek – in fact, many employees are surprised to learn that they are entitled to overtime even though they are paid a salary, rather than an hourly wage.

Civil Rights

Attorneys at Parks, Chesin & Walbert are experienced in civil rights lawsuits, and our clients hail from across the political spectrum. Elected officials must make important decisions about citizens’ voting rights that may affect the political landscape for years to come. The Constitution includes the principle of “one person, one vote,” but technology has made it easy to manipulate the boundaries of voting districts in order to achieve certain kinds of outcomes. The Voting Rights Act is one of the primary voting rights laws, and it mandates that nobody should be denied election access based on race, partisanship, or economic status. Two of our attorneys, David Walbert and A. Lee Parks, are pioneers in voting rights litigation, and they participated in landmark cases such as the racial gerrymandering case of Miller v. Johnson. Our firm also handles First Amendment litigation concerning freedom of religion and freedom of speech.

Whistleblower Protection

In Georgia, public employers such as the state or local governments are not allowed to retaliate against whistleblowers. As an employee, you are entitled to disclose legal violations by officials within your department. Under the Georgia Whistleblower Protection Act, O.C.G.A. § 45-1-4(d), public employers are not allowed to adopt, make, or enforce a practice or policy that stops a public employee from disclosing non-compliance with or a violation of laws, regulations, or rules to a government agency or supervisor. They are also not allowed to retaliate against public employees for making these disclosures, except when a disclosure is made knowing that it is false or with a reckless lack of concern for its falsity or truth. Our Atlanta employment lawyers also have substantial experience handling cases involving the whistleblower provision of Sarbanes Oxley. Under Sarbanes Oxley, employees who report misconduct by their publicly traded corporate employer are protected from retaliation.

Business and Commercial Litigation

In order to protect their business, employers may place restrictive covenants in their employment agreements, and these restrictive covenants can include non-compete, non-solicitation, and confidentiality or non-disclosure covenants. Our business litigation lawyers have substantial experience in drafting, negotiating, and litigating restrictive covenants. We also handle unfair competition and trade secret litigation, as well as litigation concerning government contracts. We have the experience and skill to advise clients on how best to structure businesses to comply with government set aside programs and other requirements, and we have been engaged by vendors to protect billion-dollar government procurements. We also handle internal disputes between partners or shareholders and claims against outside parties related to tortious interference with business relations, misappropriation, deceptive trade and debt collection practices, and real estate disputes and foreclosures. We have represented policyholders in insurance coverage disputes and bad faith litigation.

Personal Injury

We have more than 40 years of experience handling personal injury lawsuits, including cases based on car accidents, wrongful death, and medical malpractice. For example, medical malpractice cases may result from a failure to diagnose, a misdiagnosis, nursing home neglect, a surgical error, improper medication, or a failure to provide the proper treatment. Medical malpractice occurs when a health care provider deviates from the professional standard of care, causing injuries to a patient. Often, medical malpractice cases are procedurally complicated and can turn into fierce battles between experts on each side, making it imperative to hire an attorney who works with credible experts and understands how to persuasively present your case.

Car Accidents

Most car accident lawsuits in Georgia are brought under a theory of negligence. This means that you will need to show that the defendant’s unsafe driving caused the accident in which you were injured. Damages in these cases often cover a victim’s medical expenses, lost income, and pain and suffering. Often, insurance adjustors will try to look for ways in which the victim was at fault for the accident so that they can avoid paying a claim. As a result, you should promptly retain an attorney who will investigate the case from your perspective.

Wrongful Death

In Georgia, a wrongful death is caused by another party’s negligence, recklessness, criminal acts, or intentional misconduct. A wrongful death lawsuit is often similar to the personal injury claim that would have been brought by the decedent had he or she lived. It is distinct from any criminal charges for homicide that may be brought by a prosecutor. Wrongful death lawsuits are brought by the decedent’s family members or the personal representative of the decedent’s estate. The standard of proof is lower for a wrongful death lawsuit than it is for a criminal case.

Explore Your Options With an Experienced Atlanta Attorney

Whether you are looking for an employment attorney in the Atlanta area or for representation in another type of dispute, you can contact Parks, Chesin & Walbert to find out your next legal steps. We represent clients throughout Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, DeKalb, and Glynn Counties. Call us at 404-873-8048 or contact us via our online form.