Practice Areas
Employer Advice & Counsel
Preventive advice and compliance counseling to help Connecticut employers minimize risk and manage workplace issues effectively.
What I Offer
I provide advice and counsel to Connecticut employers on day-to-day employment law issues, helping them make sound decisions, ensure compliance, and reduce the risk of litigation.
What Employer Advice & Counsel Is
Employer advice and counsel is a proactive legal service designed to help businesses manage their workforce in compliance with state and federal employment laws. Instead of reacting to a lawsuit, this practice focuses on prevention. It includes advising on terminations, drafting legally sound employee handbooks and policies, managing employee leave and accommodation requests, and ensuring proper pay practices. The objective is to minimize legal risks, make informed operational decisions, and create a defensible record before a claim is ever filed.
Additional Information
Terminations and Separation Agreements
A termination decision is easier to defend when the record matches the reason given. I review whether you have documented performance issues, completed an investigation, or followed your own policy before you deliver the message. Connecticut anti-discrimination law applies to employers with one or more employees, so even a small shop has the same exposure as a larger one if the decision looks pretextual.
Separation agreements and final pay raise separate questions. Connecticut limits wage deductions and sets rules for when final wages are due. Get those details right before the employee leaves.
Managing Leave and Accommodation Requests
Connecticut FMLA eligibility can begin after three months of employment (CGS § 31-51kk), not twelve. An employee with fewer than twelve months of service may still qualify under Connecticut FMLA after three months. Paid sick leave and CT Paid Leave add another layer when someone requests time off or reports an intermittent absence.
Accommodation requests require a documented interactive process. I advise on what medical information you may request, how to handle a denial without creating retaliation exposure, and when a leave extension crosses from accommodation into undue hardship.
Handbooks and Employment Agreements
A handbook that contradicts what managers actually do is worse than no handbook at all. I review policies on harassment, discipline, leave, and pay so they match Connecticut requirements and your actual practices. Employers with three or more employees must provide sexual harassment prevention training under the Time's Up Act (CGS § 46a-54(15)(B)).
Non-compete and confidentiality terms need to be drafted narrowly. Connecticut courts will not rewrite an overbroad restriction; they may strike the whole clause. Employment agreements for executives and sales staff deserve the same scrutiny before signing.
Responding to Agency Inquiries
A CHRO charge, DOL wage complaint, or EEOC notice starts a clock. Former employees now have 300 days to file a discrimination charge with the CHRO (CGS § 46a-82(e)). Your position statement and the documents you produce in response often become the record if the matter proceeds to court.
How Engagements Work
Advisory work is billed at the hourly rate on the Fees & Services page. Most matters are a single consultation; some require ongoing counsel through an agency proceeding or policy overhaul.