Want to Avoid Workplace Legal Troubles? Try ‘Preventive Law’

These days, businesses are spending millions of dollars on wellness initiatives, in an effort to cut healthcare costs by stopping medical troubles before they happen. Another term for this type of activity is “preventive medicine.”

Well, there’s an analogy to this in the legal community… preventive law.

Disseminated by groups such as the National Center for Preventive Law (NCPL) at the California Western School of Law in San Diego, preventive law is designed, according to attorney Janice P. Brown, to “reduce costs, avoid legal problems, disputes, injuries and damage claims, and even strengthen [an employer’s] defenses when lawsuits are unavoidable.

“While it may require some upfront costs to establish such a program,” Brown continues, “preventive law practices tend to be much less expensive … than facing full-blown legal problems down the road.”

An Ounce of Prevention to Avoid a Half-Million Dollar Cure

What are the legal costs of, say, a simple sexual harassment or discrimination suit should it reach trial? Some experts estimate average defense costs at $75,000 to $200,000 out-of-pocket, not including employee time spent gathering evidence and giving depositions.

That’s if you win. Lose the case and you can add the cost of any appeals and, if required to pay, of a final settlement or judgment. Total expense can be a half-million dollars or more, plus damage to your company’s name and value.

Here’s what the Preventive Law community suggests you do to put a “legal wellness program” into effect at your workplace:

–Get a legal checkup. Preventive law firms will provide a questionnaire that audits your policies and practices against prevailing employment law, and looks at such pivotal documentation as your job descriptions and performance appraisal forms to ensure they meet legal requirements.

–Educate managers, supervisors, and staff on legal issues such as discrimination, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

–Create a legally-reviewed employee handbook and then train on it, explaining to every employee his or her rights and responsibilities with respect to the organization.

–Contract with your employees so that any legal dispute will be handled through arbitration, not the court system.

A Private Court

Arbitration is a privately held hearing, often with a top attorney or retired judge dealing out the judgments. Both sides agree in advance to abide by the presiding officer’s decision, with a very limited right of appeal. The employer usually pays the costs of this procedure.

What are the upsides? Costs tend to be lower than going through the public courts, and records are sealed, avoiding open disclosure of a company’s finances and trade secrets.

What’s more, the vagaries of a jury decision are avoided. Or, as Brown puts it, “the decision as to what damages are to be awarded is put in the hands of an experienced and less emotional decision maker.”

The key to instituting an arbitration system, however, is that an agreement to arbitrate must be signed by employees in advance of any procedure. All current employees need to sign it, as do all new hires.

For more information on preventive law, visit www.preventivelawyer.org.

---

Avoid harassment lawsuits with BLR’s training program, Interactive CD Course: Sexual Harassment! Click here for more information or to try it FREE for 30 days!

---