Kirk J. Angel’s Answers

There may be little that she can do other than any internal appeals process that the University might provide. However, I noticed that you mentioned the NAACP. If she believes that race may play a part in this, then she will have other options as VI of the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination in education on the basis of race.

If you have time to appeal the denial of your unemployment benefits, I strongly recommend that you do so. If you have received a decision from an Employment Security Division adjudicator you have the right to request a hearing. It is the employer's burden to prove that you engage in misconduct. I strongly disagree with the first poster who indicated that you needed a "claim" against your employer for the purposes of unemployment. That is simply incorrect. Please keep in mind that this...

You can only file a claim for unlawful harassment if the harassment is based on race, color, sex, national origin, religion, disability or age 40 or older. You do not mention anything related to these "protected classes" in your post so, based on that, the answer would be no. However, if the conduct is directed toward you on one of these basis, then a legal claim for unlawful harassment may be possible.

The hearing is a legal proceeding which will proceed in a fashion similar to a hearing in Superior Court. The hearing official (judge) will swear in witnesses, accept or reject documentation or witness testimony and rule on motions including those related to the admissibility of evidence. Witnesses will testify and be subject to cross examination by the opposing party. You will be cross examined by the employer's attorney and you will attempt to cross-examine the employer's witnesses.. The...

I agree with Attorney Puryear. You cannot waive your rights under Wage and Hour laws and your employer could still get in trouble for not paying you for overtime or any other warned wages.

Any employer with 15 or more employees is subject to the law that prohibits sexual harassment regardless of whether there is a policy. If the company fails to appropriately investigate or address allegations of sexual harassment, then it may be liable for damages. The company is not required to give you any information related to the claim or its investigation. The only way I see that the company could be "asking for a lawsuit" is if it failed to handle the allegation appropriately. There is...

Yes, it is legal. North Carolina is an employment-at-will state and you can be fired for any reason. It does not matter that the money did not belong to the company.

Yes. North Carolina is an employment-at-will state and you can be fired for any reason. There is no need for an employee to sign a statement that he could be fired for failing a drug test.

If the attacks occurred on the job or resulted from your work duties, then it is likely your only option would be to file for Worker's Compensation benefits.

I am not aware of any law or legal theory that would allow you to sue under these circumstances. As Attorney Taylor noted, arrest records are a matter of public record for the most part in North Carolina. The legal theories that will, on certain occasions, allow a person to sue when private information is revealed, do not apply to public information.