{"id":1782,"date":"2018-05-08T16:21:16","date_gmt":"2018-05-08T16:21:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/az-labor-employment-law\/?page_id=1782"},"modified":"2024-11-21T00:28:39","modified_gmt":"2024-11-21T00:28:39","slug":"prove-wrongful-termination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/az-labor-employment-law\/blog\/prove-wrongful-termination\/","title":{"rendered":"How Do You Prove Wrongful Termination?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction<\/h2>\n

In the state of Arizona, the employment relationship is considered “at-will<\/a>” unless there is a written employment contract or collective bargaining agreement that says otherwise. Under at-will employment laws, the employment relationship is voluntarily severable by the employer and the employee at any time, for any reason. While this leaves a vast amount of freedom for employers to terminate employees for just about any reason (or no reason at all), employees are still protected against wrongful termination that violates other federal, state, and local laws.<\/p>\n

The challenge with wrongful termination cases<\/a> is often finding sufficient evidence to prove your case. Most employers understand that they can’t fire an employee based on discrimination, retaliation, etc., and it’s not too difficult to mask unlawful termination with lawful reasons. In order to walk away with a successful wrongful termination investigation or lawsuit, you’ll need to prove that the employer acted with an illegal motive.<\/p>\n

Evidence of wrongful termination<\/h2>\n

There are two types of evidence in a wrongful termination case: direct evidence, and circumstantial evidence. Direct evidence is always best\u2014maybe an incriminating email from a superior, firsthand testimony from a reliable witness, a clear violation of written company policies established in the employee handbook, or a history of positive performance reviews that stand in stark contrast to the purported reason you were terminated. These directly support the truth of your position without the need for additional evidence or inference.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, direct evidence is difficult to come by in wrongful termination cases. Instead, circumstantial evidence is much more common. Circumstantial evidence normally relies on an inference to connect it to a conclusion of fact. In a wrongful termination case, a good example may be proof that other employees who are engaged in the same activity (e.g. tardiness, poor performance) aren’t disciplined or terminated as you were. Another example could be proving to the court that the company failed to follow established company policies when it terminated you. If you were accused of harassment and company policy dictates a thorough investigation before disciplinary actions may be taken, you may have a case for discrimination if you were fired without an investigation. Generally speaking, the more circumstantial evidence you have, the stronger your case will be.<\/p>\n

Helpful advice to strengthen your case<\/h2>\n

If you suspect that something is taking a turn for the worse with your employment relationship\u2014possibly rumored layoffs, poor company performance, or a deteriorating relationship with your manager\u2014it’s a good idea to get your ducks in a line as soon as possible. It’s usually easier to gather supporting evidence and documentation before you are terminated, while you’re still (hopefully) on good terms with your employer.<\/p>\n