Wrongful Termination Attorney

Losing your job is one of the most destabilizing events a person can experience — and when the firing was unlawful, the harm is compounded by a sense of injustice. New York is an at-will employment state, which means an employer may generally terminate an employee at any time, for any reason or no reason at all. But "at-will" has never meant "anything goes." New York State and New York City have enacted some of the most protective employment statutes in the country, and when an employer fires a worker for a reason those laws prohibit, the termination is wrongful and the employee has powerful legal remedies.

Our firm represents employees throughout New York City — in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island — who have been fired because of who they are, because they complained about unlawful conduct, or because they exercised rights the law guarantees them. This page explains what wrongful termination means under New York law, the specific statutes that apply, the deadlines that govern your claim, and the concrete steps you should take right now.

What Counts as Wrongful Termination in New York?

A termination is "wrongful" in the legal sense when it violates a statute, breaches an employment contract, or contravenes a specific legal protection. The most common categories we see in New York City include:

• Discriminatory termination — firing an employee because of a protected characteristic such as age, race, national origin, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, pregnancy, religion, marital status, or caregiver status.
• Retaliatory termination — firing an employee for complaining about discrimination or harassment, reporting illegal activity, filing a wage complaint, or seeking workers' compensation benefits.
• Termination for exercising protected rights — firing an employee for taking legally protected leave, serving on a jury, engaging in lawful off-duty activities, or discussing wages with coworkers.
• Breach of contract — firing an employee in violation of an individual employment agreement, a collective bargaining agreement, or, in some circumstances, binding promises in an employee handbook.

If your firing falls into any of these categories, New York law gives you the right to recover lost wages, emotional distress damages, and in many cases attorneys' fees and punitive damages.

The New York State Human Rights Law — Executive Law § 296

The New York State Human Rights Law (NYSHRL), codified at New York Executive Law § 296, makes it an unlawful discriminatory practice for an employer to discharge an employee because of the employee's age, race, creed, color, national origin, citizenship or immigration status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, military status, sex, disability, predisposing genetic characteristics, familial status, marital status, status as a victim of domestic violence, or arrest or conviction record (subject to Article 23-A analysis).

The NYSHRL applies to all New York employers regardless of size — even an employer with a single employee is covered. Executive Law § 296(7) separately prohibits retaliation against any person who has opposed practices forbidden by the statute or who has filed a complaint, testified, or assisted in any proceeding under it. In 2019 the Legislature amended the NYSHRL to direct courts to construe it liberally, independent of comparable statutes, which significantly lowered the bar for employees to prove their claims.

The New York City Human Rights Law — Administrative Code § 8-107

Employees working in the five boroughs enjoy an additional, even broader layer of protection under the New York City Human Rights Law (NYCHRL), N.Y.C. Administrative Code § 8-107. The NYCHRL covers all of the categories protected by state law and adds others, including caregiver status, credit history, unemployment status, and height and weight. Under Administrative Code § 8-130, the NYCHRL must be construed "liberally for the accomplishment of the uniquely broad and remedial purposes thereof" — courts have interpreted this to mean an employee need only show they were treated "less well" at least in part because of a protected characteristic.

The NYCHRL's anti-retaliation provision, Administrative Code § 8-107(7), prohibits retaliation "in any manner" against an employee who opposed discrimination, and the retaliation need not rise to the level of a firing to be actionable — though termination is the most severe form. Critically, the NYCHRL permits recovery of uncapped compensatory damages and punitive damages under Administrative Code § 8-502(a), plus attorneys' fees and costs under § 8-502(g).

Whistleblower Terminations — New York Labor Law § 740

One of the most significant developments in New York employment law took effect on January 26, 2022, when sweeping amendments to New York Labor Law § 740 transformed the state's private-sector whistleblower statute. Under the amended law, an employer may not take retaliatory action — including discharge — against an employee who discloses or threatens to disclose an activity, policy, or practice that the employee reasonably believes violates a law, rule, or regulation, or that the employee reasonably believes poses a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety.

Key features of the amended statute:

• Reasonable belief standard. The employee no longer must prove an actual violation of law occurred — a reasonable, good-faith belief is enough.
• Two-year statute of limitations. Labor Law § 740(4)(a) gives employees two years from the retaliatory action to file suit, and the statute now guarantees the right to a jury trial.
• Notice requirement. The employee generally must make a good-faith effort to notify the employer before disclosing to a public body, but exceptions apply where there is imminent danger, risk of evidence destruction, fear of physical harm, or where the employer is already aware of the conduct.
• Robust remedies. Available relief includes reinstatement or front pay in lieu of reinstatement, back pay with interest, compensation for special damages, attorneys' fees, punitive damages, and a civil penalty of up to $10,000 under § 740(6).

Health care employees have parallel protection under Labor Law § 741, which prohibits retaliation against health care workers who report improper quality of patient care.

Other Statutory Protections Against Termination

Wage Complaint Retaliation — Labor Law § 215

New York Labor Law § 215 makes it unlawful to discharge or otherwise retaliate against an employee because the employee complained about a violation of the Labor Law — for example, unpaid overtime, minimum wage violations, illegal deductions, or tip theft. Claims under § 215 carry a generous six-year statute of limitations, and remedies include reinstatement, lost compensation, liquidated damages of up to $20,000, and attorneys' fees.

Workers' Compensation Retaliation — Workers' Compensation Law § 120

If you were fired because you filed or attempted to file a workers' compensation claim, Workers' Compensation Law § 120 prohibits that discharge. A complaint must be filed with the Workers' Compensation Board within two years of the retaliatory act. Remedies include reinstatement, back pay, and penalties.

Lawful Off-Duty Conduct — Labor Law § 201-d

Labor Law § 201-d prohibits termination based on an employee's legal recreational activities outside work hours, legal use of consumable products off premises, political activities, and membership in a union. An employer that fires you for what you lawfully do on your own time may be liable under this provision.

Jury Service — Judiciary Law § 519

Judiciary Law § 519 prohibits an employer from penalizing or discharging an employee who is summoned to serve as a juror, provided the employee gives notice before the term of service.

Reproductive Health Decisions — Labor Law § 203-e

Labor Law § 203-e prohibits discrimination or retaliation, including discharge, based on an employee's or dependent's reproductive health decision-making.

Deadlines: The Statutes of Limitations That Control Your Case

Nothing destroys an otherwise strong wrongful termination case faster than a missed deadline. The applicable limitations period depends on which statute governs your claim and where you choose to pursue it.

A Worked Example

Suppose you were fired on June 1, 2024, two weeks after you reported your manager's sexual harassment to human resources. Your options and deadlines would look like this:

1. File a lawsuit in Supreme Court asserting NYSHRL and NYCHRL discrimination and retaliation claims by June 1, 2027 (three years under CPLR 214(2) and Administrative Code § 8-502(d)).
2. File an administrative complaint with the New York State Division of Human Rights by June 1, 2027 under Executive Law § 297(5).
3. File with the New York City Commission on Human Rights by June 1, 2025 under Administrative Code § 8-109(e) — a full two years shorter than the court deadline, which is why the choice of forum matters.

Now suppose instead that you were fired on June 1, 2024 because you told your employer its billing practices appeared to violate insurance regulations. Your Labor Law § 740 whistleblower claim must be filed in court by June 1, 2026. Waiting even a few extra months to consult a lawyer can permanently extinguish a claim worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Choosing Your Forum: Agency or Court?

New York's election of remedies doctrine, codified at Executive Law § 297(9) and Administrative Code § 8-502(a), generally bars an employee from pursuing the same discrimination claim in both an administrative agency and court. Once you file with the State Division of Human Rights or the City Commission on Human Rights and the case proceeds on the merits, you typically cannot later sue in court on the same claim (unless the agency dismisses for administrative convenience).

This choice has real strategic consequences. Agency proceedings are free and do not require a lawyer, but court actions frequently offer broader discovery, jury trials, and — under the NYCHRL — punitive damages. An experienced wrongful termination attorney will evaluate your evidence, damages, and goals before recommending a forum, because the decision is often irreversible.

What Compensation Can You Recover?

Depending on the statute, a successful wrongful termination claim in New York City may yield:

• Back pay — wages, bonuses, commissions, and benefits lost from the termination date through judgment.
• Front pay — projected future earnings where reinstatement is impractical.
• Emotional distress damages — compensation for the anxiety, humiliation, and mental anguish caused by the firing, uncapped under both the NYSHRL and NYCHRL.
• Punitive damages — available under Administrative Code § 8-502(a) and Labor Law § 740 to punish willful or reckless misconduct.
• Liquidated damages — up to $20,000 for Labor Law § 215 retaliation claims.
• Attorneys' fees and costs — recoverable under Executive Law § 297(10), Administrative Code § 8-502(g), Labor Law § 740(6), and Labor Law § 215.
• Reinstatement — restoration to your former position with full seniority, where appropriate.

What to Do Immediately After a Suspicious Termination

1. Do not sign anything on the spot. Severance agreements almost always contain a release of claims. Under New York law you are entitled to review the document, and signing away a strong wrongful termination claim for a few weeks' pay is often a costly mistake.
2. Preserve your evidence. Save offer letters, performance reviews, commendations, emails, text messages, and the names of witnesses. Do not take confidential company documents, but do preserve what you lawfully possess.
3. Write a timeline while memories are fresh. Note the date you complained, whom you told, exactly what was said, and how the employer's treatment of you changed afterward. Temporal proximity between protected activity and firing is powerful retaliation evidence.
4. Request your personnel file and wage records. Under Labor Law § 195, employers must maintain payroll records, and comparing the stated reason for your firing against your documented performance often exposes pretext.
5. File for unemployment benefits. A wrongful termination does not disqualify you from benefits, and the employer's statements in the unemployment proceeding can lock in its story early.
6. Consult an attorney before the shortest deadline passes. As the table above shows, some claims expire in as little as one or two years.

How Our Firm Builds Wrongful Termination Cases

Wrongful termination cases are won on proof of pretext — showing that the employer's stated reason for the firing does not hold up. Our attorneys subpoena personnel files, comparator evidence, and internal communications; depose the decision-makers; and reconstruct the sequence of events between your protected activity or protected status and the discharge. We handle every stage, from the pre-litigation demand and severance negotiation through agency proceedings, discovery, trial, and appeal. Because most of our wrongful termination matters are handled on a contingency basis, you pay no attorneys' fees unless we recover for you.

You can contact us by phone at 212-233-1233 or by email at [email protected].