Denton Severance Agreement Lawyer

Denton Severance Agreement Attorney

If you are about to lose your job, you may be dealing with a lot of conflicting emotions. It’s understandable to feel betrayed, blindsided, angry, and fearful of the future, especially if you don’t have a replacement job lined up in your immediate future. Depending on your situation, you may be offered a severance package from your employer, but before accepting it, you should consider having a Denton severance agreement lawyer look over it first.

What Is a Severance Agreement?

A severance agreement is something you may only need to worry about if you learn that you are about to lose your job and your company has decided to give you something to make up for it. Essentially, it’s a legally binding contract between an employee and their employer that explains the terms and conditions of the employee’s termination. It outlines severance pay and the potential for outgoing benefits.

Above all, a severance agreement outlines exactly what you will receive in exchange for your agreement to certain conditions for leaving your company amicably, quietly, or without much fuss. Your company’s ultimate goal with a severance agreement is to ensure that you can’t come back one day and file a wrongful termination claim. With a severance agreement in place, the company is minimizing its legal responsibility and making sure you can’t take legal action.

The minimization of your company’s legal exposure is just one of the many different aspects of a severance agreement. Every agreement is different, so it’s important that you have a trained legal professional look over your agreement just to be safe. The last thing you want is to be taken advantage of by an employer who only wants to keep you from making them look bad after you’ve been fired.

At-Will Employment

It’s important to keep in mind that Texas is an at-will employment state. Essentially, that means that any employer in Texas can fire an employee whenever they want. They don’t need a genuine cause. As long as firing the employee does not violate the terms of their employment contract or discriminate against them, there may be no legal recourse for the employee to take. Since Texas practices at-will employment, severance is never guaranteed.

Severance is given in Texas at the discretion of the employer. It is entirely up to them to decide if they want to provide their employees with a severance package. Additionally, your employer has to give you all of the wages you are due upon your termination. If your employer does decide to offer you a severance package, there is a good chance that your wages will be a part of it.

When you are offered a severance package, you may be under the impression that it’s non-negotiable. You may think that you can either accept the agreement or your employer will revoke it, and you’ll be left with nothing. This may not be the case. Before accepting a severance agreement, you should seriously consider having an experienced severance agreement lawyer look through your agreement and negotiate your exit contract on your behalf.

What’s in a Severance Agreement?

A severance agreement is not just a hefty check and a firm handshake as you walk out the door. It’s more than an expression of your company’s appreciation and goodwill. In fact, a severance agreement is a calculated, legally binding contract designed to ensure you can’t take legal action against your employer for wrongful termination. In addition, your severance agreement may contain numerous clauses that prevent you from working with competitors.

Hiring a lawyer to look over your agreement could save you from additional hardship as you try to find work in a similar field, only to be stonewalled by a non-compete agreement in your severance package. The last thing you want is to be taken advantage of by your former employer, especially after your employment has ended. Here are some of the significant elements that your severance agreement might contain:

• Confidentiality Agreements: Depending on the work you did with your company, you may be in a unique position. You may be privy to certain trade secrets, recipes, personal data, or other confidential information. To prevent you from sharing any of this information, your severance agreement may contain certain confidentiality agreements. It may be right of your company to assume your knowledge or access to information.Your company may take some closely guarded steps to ensure that you are unable to share any of this information with competitors. These steps may include insisting that you sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) in exchange for receiving your severance package and associated perks.
• Health Insurance: A substantial severance package may allow you to continue relying on your company’s health insurance for a determined amount of time. It is important to keep in mind that there’s no guarantee this will be a part of your severance. You may be provided with information regarding the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) and how to access your continued coverage, if applicable.
• Legal Documents: Depending on your situation, you may be asked to sign a number of additional legal documents as part of your severance. Some of these documents may include a Release of Claims form, where you would waive your right to take legal action against your employer for wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, or breach of contract.

There may also be a non-disparagement clause. This is a clause that keeps you from issuing any negative statements about your employer in public or a non-compete clause, which prevents you from seeking employment with competing companies.

Reach Out to a Severance Agreement Lawyer Today

It can feel overwhelming and infuriating to suddenly lose your job. Desiring compensation and basic respect for the time you put into your company is not unreasonable. If you are offered a severance agreement, you may just want to accept it and start moving on. However, you should consider having a lawyer look things over for you just in case.

At Alagood Cartwright Burke PC, we can help you negotiate your severance and make sure your interests are protected. Contact us to speak to someone about what we can do for your case.