Sacramento Sexual Harassment Attorney

Sacramento Sexual Harassment Lawyer

There is no time in the workplace that sexual harassment is acceptable. Unfortunately, it’s still a fairly common occurrence. If you have experienced this unwanted attention, a Sacramento sexual harassment lawyer can help you get compensation and justice.

Offering Confidential Assistance to Employees

You deserve to seek full and fair compensation from your employer if you ever had to endure:

• Unwanted touching
• Unwelcome sexual advances
• Exposure to sexual conversation and imagery,
• Other types of sexual misconduct at work

We at the Fulton Law Corporation can help. For more than 20 years, our Sacramento sexual harassment attorney has been providing employees with the legal representation they need to assert their rights and hold responsible parties accountable for their actions and decisions. Our firm has won substantial settlements and judgments for our clients that helped them recover some peace of mind after experiencing sexually exploitative and inappropriate activity at work.

If you think you have sexual harassment claims or aren’t sure and want to explore your options, reach out to our sexual harassment lawyer in Sacramento for a free case evaluation.

While some law offices seek to handle a wide breadth of cases, at the Fulton Law Corporation, we focus exclusively on employment law. This exclusivity means we have plenty of experience working on these cases and have seen most of the opposing tactics.

Mr. Fulton founded the firm with the motto “measured advice, zealous advocacy, and tireless dedication.” This motto continues to light our path and help us put the client first. Corporations often have high-powered representation when dealing with employment law cases, and we aim to provide coverage for those fighting against their employer for an infraction.

How to Recognize Sexual Harassment at Work

Sexual harassment isn’t always easy to recognize, and sometimes people aren’t as familiar with the extent of what it is as they should be. Sexual misconduct and abuse are commonly thought of in their most overt forms, but others can be more nuanced and may not be directed at any individual in particular.

These are just a few of the most common ways people encounter sexual harassment at work:

• Discussing sexually explicit topics unrelated to work
• Unwelcome touching
• Making crude and sexually suggestive comments
• Any request for a sexual favor
• Sexual remarks about someone’s clothing or body
• Stalking
• Repeated requests for a date
• Sexual assault and rape
• Sending unwanted and inappropriate text messages/images
• Sexual threats or threats made while demanding sexual favors
• Blocking someone’s path

It would be impossible to list all of the potential scenarios in which sexual harassment can occur at work. As a form of sex discrimination, sexual harassment may also be intertwined with other forms of discrimination. Should you be concerned about an incident that you experienced, take advantage of a free case evaluation with our Sacramento sexual harassment lawyer.

During this meeting, you can speak with an attorney who can help you assess your claim and provide next-step options. Our Sacramento sexual harassment lawyer at the Fulton Law Corporation has 20+ years of experience helping clients win sexual harassment lawsuits, and he can provide the legal assistance you may need to win fair and just compensation.

Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment

Asking employees for sexual favors in exchange for promotions, raises, or under the threat of termination and retaliation is illegal. This is known as “quid pro quo” sexual harassment, and an exchange of a sexual favor for some workplace incentive is key to identifying this form of abuse.

A sexual favor can be anything from a physical act to a request for explicit photographs of the victim or even submission to ongoing sexual harassment. Under no circumstances can anyone at work make such a deal with you.

If you have been offered anything in exchange for a sexual favor at work, even if it was to avoid a reprimand or termination, immediately consult with our sexual harassment attorney in Sacramento for help. Remember: You don’t have to have been given an overt offer to pursue a claim. In many cases, it’s possible to hold responsible parties accountable for quid pro quo sexual harassment even if the exchange was strongly implied.

What People Often Don’t Know about Sexual Harassment Cases

Sexual harassment is often talked about in pop culture and mass media, but in addition to some misunderstandings, there’s also a pretty wide gap in knowledge about this topic.

Here are some things about sexual harassment that often go unsaid:

• You don’t have to be directly involved. You can still file a complaint if your coworker is the target of sexual harassment, but knowing it’s going on impacts your ability to work.
• Sexual harassment doesn’t have to be verbal or physical. The passive display of sexually explicit imagery on calendars, computer screens, in emails, and other places is enough to file a lawsuit.
• Under no circumstances is it legal for an employer to retaliate. Even if your lawsuit is unsuccessful, your employer cannot take action against you for reporting sexual harassment or suing the company for it. If you were fired, you may have grounds for a wrongful termination lawsuit.
• Your employer can be held liable even if you voluntarily quit. The statute of limitations for a claim lasts one year from the last time it occurred. This means you have time to decide what you want to do, even if that includes leaving the employer upon your own accord.

What Kind of Compensation Can I Expect if I File a Claim for Sexual Harassment?

If you win the trial or settle with the company, you will likely have access to several concessions from your employer. Your lawyer can help you with the negotiating process and advise you on what’s a fair deal for your situation.

The most common compensation we see is back pay for any earnings you may have lost as a result of the harassment. This back pay can include any bonuses or promotions you missed out on because of the harassment or retaliation. You can also settle for future earnings you won’t receive if you cannot return to your position.

In other instances, we see clients receive their old jobs back if their employer wrongfully terminated them. You may also be able to negotiate for your workplace to require mandatory training to avoid future sexual harassment cases.

Other settlements include having the company pay for your legal fees or having them pay for your emotional distress due to the harassment. If a doctor diagnoses you with depression or anxiety as a result of the sexual harassment, you may have the right to compensation to help you deal with the ongoing medical expenses to treat it.

What Is the Statute of Limitations for Filing a Claim for Sexual Harassment in California?

Before 2020, California had a statute of limitations of just one year for sexual harassment cases. Some prominent voices felt this was too short of a window for victims to report and take legal action for the crime, and the policy no longer stands.

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill that went into effect at the start of 2020 to give victims more time to make their voices heard and summon up the courage and support to speak up on sexual harassment. AB 9 allows victims to have three years to file a claim or report sexual harassment instead of the previous one-year limit.

Victims must file an official report with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing. A Sacramento sexual harassment lawyer can assist with the filing process to make sure you follow the process correctly.

What Should You Do After You’ve Been the Victim of Sexual Harassment?

After you’ve experienced sexual harassment, you’ll likely be dealing with a variety of emotions. Clients have told us they feel scared, angry, and anxious after the incident. The first thing you should do is try to remain calm and keep your wits about you.

After the incident, you could try speaking with the harasser if you feel comfortable doing so. You could explain how what they did made you feel and let them know it isn’t okay. Some people will be accepting of this, while others may lash out. Do not do this if you are fearful of retaliation from the individual.

You should speak with your supervisor or human resources department about the incident and ask to begin the process of filing an official report. Do not go to your supervisor if they were the ones who committed the sexual harassment. Keep a copy of your complaint with you in case you need to use it as evidence later.

What Are the Steps of a Sexual Harassment Case?

For the next step, you should gather evidence and keep a log of anything you might need to explain your side of the story in court. If there was anything in writing that constituted sexual harassment, you can use that to help build your case as well. If you can access them, you should try to keep a record of any job evaluation forms or any other documents about your quality of work and as an employee.

Speak with your coworkers and see if they can corroborate your testimony and ask them to back you up in case the situation escalates and heads to a trial. If any of them experienced sexual harassment, you may work together on your claim.

Finally, you need to report the incident to both the Department of Fair Employment and Housing and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Once you file the report, you can move on to file a claim against your employer. At some point in the process, you will likely want to speak with an experienced Sacramento sexual harassment attorney to have them help you with the case.

Do You Need a Lawyer to Represent You When Filing a Claim For Sexual Harassment?

While no law says you must hire legal representation when dealing with a sexual harassment claim, having an attorney on your side is the wisest option. An attorney understands the law and how it can be used in a sexual harassment case. They will have access to knowledge that most people don’t have at their disposal, and they can use that knowledge to create the most optimal outcome for your case.

You are likely to be full of emotions from the harassment and might be feeling raw when discussing the case. You need a lawyer who can approach your case not from a place of raw emotion but one of objectivity. Your lawyer is still going to be compassionate and empathetic toward your situation, but they won’t let the emotional closeness of the situation guide them.

When you file a claim for sexual harassment, you will likely have to contend with your company and all of their attorneys. Trying to go it alone could lead to you losing out on a winnable claim. An attorney can give you a fighting chance in court or negotiate a settlement before the case goes in front of a judge.

If the company offers a settlement, your attorney can look over it and make sure you are getting a fair deal.

Get the Most out of Your Free Case Evaluation

The Fulton Law Corporation offers all prospective clients with a free opportunity to discuss a harassment claim with our Sacramento attorney. We hold these case evaluations in strict confidence – even if you do not decide to hire us, under no circumstances will any part of your discussion with our Sacramento sexual harassment attorney be revealed to any third party.

Whether you are confident about pursuing a lawsuit or want to explore your options, we reserve this free case evaluation for you to tell us about your situation and learn more about how we may be able to help.

We encourage all who intend to come in for a case evaluation to write down any and all questions you may have about your situation, what’s involved in a lawsuit, or other matters that concern you. We also believe it’s helpful for potential clients to come to us with a detailed account of what happened to them that includes as many hard facts (dates, times, locations, names of individuals, etc.) as possible.