Employment Counsel for Miami-Dade Employers

KEW Legal helps employers handle workplace issues as part of its outside general counsel work for Miami-Dade businesses. This page is for owners, managers, and HR leads who need an employment law attorney for employers in Miami-Dade County. The first consultation is free, confidential, and carries no obligation to continue.

Employment Counsel for Miami-Dade Employers

KEW Legal advises employers on employee issues as part of its outside general counsel work, with offices in Coral Gables and Sunny Isles Beach. For an employment law attorney for employers in Miami-Dade County, employee matters rarely stand alone. A termination can touch a contract, a handbook, and a partnership agreement at the same time. That’s why the practice treats employee issues as part of ongoing counsel for the business.

Kristina E. Wilson is the lawyer responsible for this page. The practice has support staff, including assistants and office staff, who handle scheduling and paperwork. The employer matters it covers include:

• Terminations, including the documented reasons behind them
• Discipline and corrective action
• Employee policies and handbooks
• Responses to employee complaints and related demand letters

This page describes what the practice covers. It does not promise a result in any matter, and every employer’s facts are different.

Florida and Federal Employment Rules Miami-Dade Employers Must Follow

Florida and federal law both limit certain employment decisions. The coverage rules start with how many employees you have.

Under Fla. Stat. § 760.02, an “employer” for the Florida Civil Rights Act means a person with 15 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks. The federal definition of “employer” covers a person engaged in an industry affecting commerce who has fifteen or more employees for each working day in each of twenty or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, and any agent of such a person. Because the count runs across many weeks, a single snapshot of headcount can mislead.

Florida law names the traits it protects. Florida law prohibits employers from discriminating against employees and applicants based on protected characteristics, including in discharge, hiring, pay, and terms of work. The listed traits include race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, national origin, age, handicap, and marital status. The same section also bars retaliation against someone who opposed an unlawful practice or took part in a proceeding under it.

Statutes, contracts, and public policy set limits, so each termination needs a check against them first. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission publishes guidance on federal duties for employers.

Common Workplace Matters Employers Bring to Counsel

Most employer questions in this area involve harassment, retaliation, disability accommodation, or discrimination claims. Each one turns on specific facts, not a fixed script.

Under the federal regulation on sexual harassment, with respect to conduct between fellow employees, an employer is responsible for acts of sexual harassment in the workplace. That applies when the employer knew or should have known about the conduct and did not take immediate and appropriate corrective action. The same rule urges employers to prevent harassment, including by telling employees how to raise concerns.

Florida’s whistleblower law, Fla. Stat. § 448.102, bars retaliatory action against an employee who objects to a violation of law. It also covers an employee who gives information to a government investigation. An employee’s report to an agency is protected only after the employee raised the issue in writing with a supervisor or the employer. That written step is one reason documentation matters.

Under the federal disability employment provision, discrimination against a qualified individual on the basis of disability includes not making reasonable accommodations to the known physical or mental limitations of an otherwise qualified individual with a disability who is an applicant or employee. The exception is when the employer can show undue hardship. Medical exams and disability questions for employees must be job-related and consistent with business necessity.

Miami-Dade workplaces often include staff who work in English and Spanish. Hospitality, construction, healthcare, and logistics are common industries across the county. As a general observation, a policy written in one language may be hard to follow for staff who read another. It’s worth checking how your materials reach every worker.

Employer Questions When a Complaint or Charge Arrives

When a complaint or agency charge arrives, your first steps are to keep records and avoid actions that could look like retaliation. Those early steps often shape how the matter is reviewed later.

Should HR be told? Your internal reporting path usually follows your written policy. Counsel can advise on the order of steps, and writing down who knew what, and when, keeps the record clear.

• Preserve relevant records, including emails, schedules, reviews, and texts.
• Avoid changes to pay, schedule, or duties tied to the complaint until counsel reviews them.
• Route agency notices and demand letters to counsel without delay.
• Note every deadline stated in the notice.

Timing rules matter. Florida’s civil rights remedies, in Fla. Stat. § 760.11, set a filing period. That period runs from the earlier of a commission reasonable-cause determination or a federal Notice of Right to Sue. Review any agency notice promptly.

Handbooks, Policies, and Terminations: Preventive Employment Work

Written policies and documented termination reasons are the core of preventive employment work for an employer. Outside general counsel work often covers employee handbooks, anti-harassment and complaint procedures, separation agreements, and the written record behind each termination.

Consistent written policies help show how an employer applies its own rules. They don’t control how a dispute ends. They do give the employer clear standards to point to.

Restrictive covenants need care. Under Fla. Stat. § 542.335, a court will not enforce a restrictive covenant unless it is in a writing signed by the person against whom enforcement is sought. A covenant not supported by a legitimate business interest is void and unenforceable.

For covered noncompete agreements, Fla. Stat. § 542.45 sets conditions for full enforceability. One of them is written advice to the employee of the right to seek counsel before signing. A template signed without that step deserves a close look.

Offer letters and contractor arrangements need review too. How a worker is classified depends on the facts of the work, not only the label in the contract.

How the Free First Consultation Works

The first consultation is free, confidential, and without obligation to continue. KEW Legal has offices in Coral Gables and Sunny Isles Beach, Florida.

It helps to bring a few items to that first conversation:

• The employee’s written complaint, charge, or demand letter
• Relevant policies, handbook sections, and any signed agreements
• A timeline of events, with dates and names
• Any notice from a government agency, with the date it arrived

The consultation covers what you bring and what the next steps may look like. It doesn’t produce a promised result, and it doesn’t commit you to any engagement.

If a matter falls outside this practice’s scope, the practice may refer you to another lawyer or firm.

Employer Questions Answered, and Next Steps

Whether an employee can sue an employer in Florida depends on the statute involved, the facts, and the timing rules that apply.

Can an employee sue an employer in Florida for unfair treatment?

It may be possible, depending on the claim. Florida’s civil rights statute sets remedies and filing periods that depend on the case.

Should HR be told when an employee threatens a lawsuit?

Your written policy usually sets the reporting path. Counsel can advise on the order of steps.

What affects how a dispute is evaluated?

The written record, the timing of events, what the employer knew, and how it responded. No one can predict how a particular matter will end.

Does a business need written harassment and complaint policies?

Written policies help employees know how to raise a concern. Federal guidance on sexual harassment points employers toward that step. Counsel can review what your business already has.

Every employer’s situation is different. An employment law attorney for employers in Miami-Dade County reviews the written record before advising on next steps.

This page describes the practice’s scope only. It includes no client testimonials, past results, or ratings, and it promises no outcome.

If an agency charge or a termination decision is sitting on your desk, you don’t have to work through it alone. Send KEW Legal a message to set up your free, confidential first consultation.