Employment Law
Ms. Smith devotes over half of her lawyer time to representing clients in employment related disputes, and providing other employment related legal services. Ms. Smith focuses her employment litigation practice on representing executive and professional personnel. Many of Ms. Smith’s employment litigation cases involve some aspect of business litigation or whistleblower retaliation litigation. Ms. Smith also represents low-wage workers in cases where overt sexual harassment is involved, or where there are significant public policy issues in play. From time to time, if circumstances warrant, Ms. Smith represents employers, and she frequently advises and assists employers with pro-active measures designed to prevent employment litigation in the first instance.
Workplace Discrimination
Workplace discrimination happens when an employee or potential hire is subjected to an adverse employment action (such as refusal to hire or promote, demotion, suspension, or termination) or treated differently than others in the terms and conditions of employment, because of their race, gender, age, disability, or other protected status.The Law Offices of Elizabeth “Booka” Smith regularly handles discrimination claims and lawsuits on behalf of employees who have been unlawfully discriminated against by their employer or potential employer.
Workplace Harassment/ Hostile Work Environment
Harassing or hostile actions by one employee toward another which are unwelcome and cause the employee to have difficulty performing his or her work may violate federal and state law if the harassment or hostility is based on the employee’s protected status. If you are being “bullied” at work because of your age, gender, sexual orientation, race or color, national origin, disability, or veteran status, you may have an actionable legal claim for hostile work environment. In order for bullying to be considered illegal, the harassment or hostility must be unwelcome and objectively offensive. The conduct must be severe an pervasive – a one-time stray offensive remark does not create a hostile work environment in the eyes of the law. In order to prove a claim for hostile work environment, the employee must object to or report the unwelcome conduct so that others in the workplace are aware of the behavior and the employer has an opportunity to fix the problem. Finally, there must be evidence that the harassment or hostility actually interfered with the employee’s ability to do his or her work. There is a wide variety of conduct that may be considered offensive, such as assaulting or threatening to assault someone, mocking or ridiculing, insulting or putting someone down, displaying offensive pictures or objects, or actively interfering with the employee’s work performance. If you believe you are the victim of illegal harassment or an illegal hostile working environment CONTACT US to schedule a consultation with Ms. Smith to discuss your rights, options, and potential representation.
Business Litigation
Ms. Smith began her legal career in 1995 in Boston working as an associate attorney in the Business Litigation Department of a large international law firm. Upon her return to her home state of Colorado, Ms. Smith continued to devote a substantial portion of her law practice to litigating business related disputes. At present, about one-third of Ms. Smith’s practice is devoted to business litigation. The vast majority of business cases Ms. Smith handles arise out of employment related disputes.
Whistleblower Law/QUI TAM
A “whistleblower” is anyone who alerts the government or their employer of improper conduct or fraudulent activity committed either inside of or outside the company by which they are employed. Whether to “blow-the-whistle” is a hard decision to make, even though it may be the morally correct thing to do. Unfortunately, whistleblowers are often the victims of retaliation in the workplace. The upside is that recent federal legislation has created whistleblower reward programs and qui tam provisions which are designed to incent employees to do the right thing and come forward to report fraud and wrongdoing.
Mediator Services
Ms. Smith earned her certification to mediate from Mares-Dixon & Associates in 2010. Since then, Ms. Smith has served as a mediator for the Denver County Court and has successfully mediated several civil law disputes. As a mediator, Ms. Smith has routinely been complimented for her “fantastic interpersonal skills” and her ability to connect with people and to understand, empathize, and brainstorm creative solutions to difficult problems. As a litigator, Ms. Smith has represented clients in dozens of mediations throughout the country and overseas in a wide variety of disputes. In this capacity, she has gained a wealth of experience that she is able to translate into her practice as a mediator. If you are in need of mediation services either as a plaintiff, defendant, individual, or corporation CONTACT US to determine Ms. Smith’s availability and to discuss your mediation needs.
Consulting Services For Employers
Ms. Smith devotes a portion of her time to working with employers to develop business strategies for maximizing employee performance and limiting legal liability. Ms. Smith believes that most employment lawsuits could be avoided or at least mitigated with proper knowledge of employment laws and training of management. In addition, Ms. Smith believes that companies that have good policies and good enforceable contracts are better positioned to defend themselves in the case of inevitable litigation. Ms. Smith provides a wide array of consulting services for employers all of which are geared toward creating a better work environment. These consulting services include:
