Flat-fee and hourly employment help in Evanston.

Plenty of people only call a lawyer once a situation has already come apart. Early guidance can help you preserve your rights, assess risk and prepare for what is ahead, whether or not litigation is ever on the horizon.

Employee counseling

Counseling is for employees still in the job and dealing with unfair treatment or retaliation, a performance plan or discipline, a cut in pay or hours, or a job that is getting worse by the week. Frances works with you directly and confidentially to understand what is happening, what the law says about it and what your options are, so you can make decisions with a clear view of the risks.

When counseling helps most

Counseling is most useful early: when a performance plan appears after you raised a concern, when your duties or pay change without explanation, when you are thinking about reporting harassment, or when you are weighing whether to resign. Frances can help you put concerns in writing, prepare for difficult meetings and keep a record that protects you later.

Workplace consultations

A workplace consultation is a focused, one-time review of a specific issue: a new policy, an accommodation request, a proposed change to your role, a new agreement you are asked to sign while still employed, or a problem with how you are being paid. It can be handled for a flat fee, and it gives you an attorney’s view before you act rather than after.

Timing matters

Severance review windows and unemployment appeal deadlines are short, and advice is most useful before you sign, resign or sit down with the employer, not after. If there is a date on the page you were handed, mention it first when you call, and send the document as soon as you can.

Severance agreement review and negotiation

A review is worth having even when no claim is in view. If your employer has handed you a severance agreement, Frances can go through the terms with you, explain what each one means and push for a better deal where there is room. See severance agreement review for what she looks at, including the release, restrictive covenants and the review window.

unemployment appeals

If the state unemployment agency denied your benefits, you may still have options. Frances offers flat-fee or hourly representation for unemployment appeals to help you present your case. An appeal usually leads to a hearing where testimony and documents are presented, and a further appeal can go to the agency’s review board. The appeal deadline is printed on the determination, and it is short.

Flat fee or hourly: which fits?

A flat fee covers a defined piece of work for one agreed price, which suits one-time support such as a severance review, an unemployment appeal or a workplace consultation. Hourly work is billed for the time spent, which suits ongoing counseling where the amount of work is hard to predict. Frances explains which fits your matter before you commit. See fee structures for the full picture, including contingency.

If it turns into a case

Counseling sometimes uncovers a claim, such as wrongful termination or unpaid wages. If the facts support one, Frances discusses the options with you, including whether a contingency or hybrid fee would apply to that work. Nothing changes without a new written agreement.

What you get at the end

Flat-fee and hourly work ends with something concrete: a clear assessment of where you stand, a marked-up agreement with proposed changes, a plan for a hard conversation at work, or representation at your unemployment hearing. You know what the work will produce before it starts, and you decide afterwards whether you need anything more.

Who this is for

Employees in Evanston and nearby communities who want an attorney’s view without starting a lawsuit: people still in the job, people who have just been handed an agreement, and people contesting an unemployment denial. It is also a good starting point if you are not sure yet what kind of help you need.