Question 1

How much does a Richmond employment lawyer cost?

Accepted Answer

Most Richmond employment-law engagements at our firm run on transparent flat fees or HR-counsel retainers rather than open-ended hourly billing. A custom employee handbook, restrictive-covenant package, or separation agreement is quoted as a single fixed fee after a brief intake call. Ongoing HR counsel is available as a monthly retainer that covers routine handbook updates, hiring questions, accommodation issues, and pre-termination review. Complex or contested matters fall outside this scope and are referred to dedicated employment counsel. You will see the fee in writing before any work begins.

Question 2

Are non-competes enforceable in Virginia?

Accepted Answer

Non-competes are enforceable in Virginia only when narrowly tailored in scope, geography, and duration, and Virginia Code § 40.1-28.7:7 prohibits non-competes against "low-wage employees" entirely — a category recently expanded by the General Assembly. Virginia courts will not blue-pencil an overbroad covenant; they will strike it. We draft restrictive covenants for Richmond employers — Innsbrook professional firms, Short Pump retail and healthcare operators, and Henrico manufacturers — to be defensible under current Virginia law, paired with non-solicitation, confidentiality, and IP-assignment provisions that often do more practical work than the non-compete itself.

Question 3

How do I terminate a Richmond employee safely?

Accepted Answer

Safe termination of a Richmond employee starts with documentation built before the termination decision — performance reviews, written warnings, and consistent application of policies in the handbook. Before any sensitive termination, a Richmond employment lawyer should review the file, the proposed reason, the comparator employees, and the proposed separation and release agreement. Common errors we see: terminating a Richmond employee on a Friday afternoon with no documentation, offering severance without a release, or using a generic separation agreement that does not satisfy ADEA or Virginia release requirements. We routinely review pre-termination files and draft compliant separation packages.

Question 4

What is the Virginia Human Rights Act and how does it affect Richmond employers?

Accepted Answer

The Virginia Human Rights Act prohibits employment discrimination based on protected characteristics and, after recent amendments, applies to Richmond employers with as few as 5 employees for some claims and 15 employees for others. The Act provides for damages, lawyers' fees, and a state administrative process through the Virginia Office of Civil Rights, and it overlaps with federal Title VII, the ADA, and the ADEA. Richmond employers should treat VHRA exposure as roughly equivalent to federal exposure and update handbooks and training accordingly. We advise on intake of complaints, investigation, and response to VOCR and EEOC charges.

Question 5

Do I need separate employment agreements for executives versus hourly employees?

Accepted Answer

Yes — Richmond executive employment agreements typically cover compensation, equity or phantom equity, severance, restrictive covenants tailored to a higher-compensation employee, change-in-control protections, and IP assignment, while hourly and rank-and-file employees are usually onboarded with offer letters plus the employee handbook. The mistake we see most often is a generic offer letter for an executive role that quietly omits restrictive covenants or IP assignment, and then a costly cleanup when the executive leaves. We draft layered employment-document templates so each role gets the right paper.

Richmond Employment Lawyer for Employers