Minneapolis, Minnesota Employment Law Firm

The Law Office of Joshua R. Williams, PLLC

2701 University Avenue SE
Suite 209
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55414
USA

(612) 486-5540

(612) 605-1944

www.jrwilliamslaw.com

Contact Joshua Williams

Law Firm Overview Free Consultation

I am Joshua R. Williams, Attorney at Law. I founded the Law Office of Joshua R. Williams to seek justice for people who were harmed by others. I believe in using the legal system as an instrument for making business, industry, and individuals accountable for their unlawful conduct. I will work diligently to help my clients assert their rights and ensure that justice is carried out.

Consistent with my philosophy, the focus of my practice is representing plaintiffs in lawsuits. I can help clients with the following types of cases: Employment Law, Injury Law, Civil Rights, Consumer Protection, and Immigration.

Year this Office was Established: 2009

Languages: Spanish; English.

Practice Areas

Additional Practice Areas: Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA); Consumer Protection; Debt Collection Harassment; Consumer Fraud; Police Misconduct; Police Brutality; False Arrest; Excessive Force; Asylum; Humanitarian Immigration.

Practice Areas Description

My practice includes:

- Employment Law

I am passionate about helping employees who have been victimized by unlawful employment practices such as discrimination, and sexual harassment. I will also protect employees from employers who deny (or retaliate against employees who exercise) leave protected under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) or the Minnesota Parental Leave Law (MPLL). I also protect clients from unlawful employer retaliation for reporting discrimination or blowing the whistle on illegal or improper conduct. I believe that the most effective way to rid the workplace of these illegal actions is to hold employers accountable. If your employer has engaged in unlawful employment practices, I will negotiate compensation or sue your employer and represent you in court, if necessary.

- Wrongful Termination

Minnesota is an at-will employment state, which means that in most cases your employer can fire you at any time for any reason, for a bad reason, or for no reason at all. There are some exceptions to employment at-will, as set forth by the following: Contract; Employee Handbooks/Policies; Union Agreements; Discrimination; Retaliation; Public Policy. If I believe your employer has violated your legal rights I will negotiate compensation or sue your employer and represent you in court, if necessary. I will take your case on a contingent fee basis, which means you owe me nothing unless I am able to recover money for you.

* Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)

I have developed a subspecialty in Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) law, having brought multiple lawsuits on behalf of employees whose employers violated their FMLA-protected rights. The FMLA requires employers to provide eligible employees with 12 weeks of job-protected unpaid leave to care for their own or an immediate family member’s serious health condition, or to care for a new child (birth, adoption, or foster care). FMLA protects employees against discrimination for exercising their rights under the FMLA, so that employers cannot use the taking of FMLA-qualified leave as a negative factor in any employment actions, such as promotion, discipline, layoff or termination, whether for cause or for any other reason.

* Discrimination

Discrimination is treating someone differently based on his/her membership in a “protected class.” Protected classes include race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, marital status, physical or mental disability, receipt of public assistance, and age. Discriminatory practices may include racial slurs, derogatory comments, workplace harassment, expressions of prejudice, verbal abuse, or termination or reprimands where co-workers who were not members of the employee’s protected class engaged in the same conduct as the employee but were not terminated or reprimanded. Discrimination can also be subtle, such as reassignment to a difficult or unpleasant work task, failure to promote, or poor job reviews despite adequate performance.

* Whistleblower/Retaliation

State and federal laws prohibit employers from taking adverse action against employees in retaliation for exercising family medical leave, bringing a discrimination or harassment claim, participating in a discrimination or harassment investigation, or blowing the whistle on illegal or improper conduct. “Adverse action” includes termination, demotion, reassignment to a difficult or unpleasant work task, or failure to promote. If I believe your employer has violated your legal rights I will negotiate compensation or sue your employer and represent you in court, if necessary.

* Harassment

Harassment is unwanted conduct based on an employee’s membership in a “protected class” that creates a hostile environment or adversely affects the individual’s employment. Protected classes include race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, marital status, physical or mental disability, receipt of public assistance, and age. Most harassment claims are for sexual harassment. Harassment may include racial slurs, derogatory comments, epithets, expressions of prejudice, and verbal abuse. Sexual harassment may include unwanted touching, unwanted exposure to graphic sexual discussion and conduct, unwanted exposure to pornography, unwelcome sexual advances, unwelcome requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature.

- Injury Law

An injury can have a catastrophic effect on the victim’s life. Fortunately, the law recognizes this fact as well.

If you suffered an injury, you may be entitled to recover money for your medical bills, lost wages, and pain and suffering.
Insurance companies rarely offer fair compensation to injured people, and often take the position that the victim was somehow at fault. I will use my knowledge and experience to make insurance companies treat you with dignity and respect and pay you the money you deserve. If the insurance company refuses to pay you the compensation you are entitled to, then I will sue the person(s) who caused your injury and represent you in court.

If you settle with an insurance company before consulting with a lawyer, you may be giving up rights you didn’t know you had. I can help you, but only if you call me.

- Civil Rights

Various laws guarantee the right to be free from discrimination based on "protected characteristics" such as race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, receipt of public assistance, or age. I can help clients who have been treated unfairly because they possess one or more of these protected characteristics. People victimized by discrimination are entitled to damages, and I will negotiate compensation or sue the party who engaged in discriminatory conduct and represent you in court, if necessary. I will sue state actors who violated their protected rights, including police officers liable for police misconduct, police brutality, false arrest, or excessive force.

- Consumer Protection

State and federal laws make it unlawful for businesses to subject consumers to fraudulent, deceptive, unfair, undignified, and misleading practices. I believe the court system is the most effective means for consumers to enforce their rights.

* Debt Collection Harassment

Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), it is illegal for debt collectors to engage in abusive, deceptive, and unfair debt collection practices. If a debt collector violates the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act you are entitled to $1,000 and the collector must pay your attorney fees and reimburse the cost of bringing a lawsuit. If I believe your FDCPA rights have been violated I will take your case on a contingent fee basis, which means you owe me nothing unless I am able to recover money for you.

* Consumer Fraud/Class Action

Minnesota law prohibits businesses from selling their products to consumers by using false pretenses, false promises, misrepresentations, misleading statements, or any other deceptive practice. Consumer rights are often hard to enforce due the time and expense of bringing a lawsuit, and businesses know this. Even though the courts can force companies who violate consumers’ rights to pay money damages, businesses continue to engage in unlawful conduct because the number of individuals willing to stand up for themselves is relatively small. For this reason, the law permits class action lawsuits, which allow many similarly situated people to join together to bring legal claims in one case. In class action lawsuits, the relatively small amounts of money that companies are ripping off consumers can add up to hundreds of thousands and even millions of dollars.

- Mediation

I am a Rule 114 Qualified Neutral trained in both the facilitative and evaluative approaches. Regardless of whether a court orders the parties to participate in Alternative Dispute Resolution ("ADR") or the parties voluntarily choose to mediate, my goal is to assist the parties create an environment where they can (1) engage in meaningful communication, (2) understand and articulate their perceptions of the events that led to the dispute, (3) refine needs and interests, and (4) craft creative, durable solutions. If the parties agree that the law should be the controlling standard in settling the dispute, I utilize my experience as a litigator to assess the strengths and weaknesses of the parties' positions and communicate possible legal outcomes.

- Immigration

This country was built on the hope, blood, sweat, and tears of immigrants from around the world. At a time when immigration laws have become more restrictive, the Law Office of Joshua R. Williams is dedicated to helping people who were born outside of the United States.

* Citizenship and Naturalization

Some permanent residents are eligible to apply for United States citizenship. In today’s immigration environment, some permanent residents are being deported even if they have lived in the United States for many years, so it is important for eligible permanent residents to consider applying for U.S. citizenship. Immigrants who become citizens cannot be deported from the United States, and they can also acquire tax, employment, and other benefits, including automatic citizenship for their eligible children under the age of 18.