The highest amount you can get for wrongful termination has no fixed dollar ceiling for many claims, so your total depends on your lost pay, the harm you suffered, and whether punitive damages apply. Federal discrimination claims are the main exception, because federal law caps some damages based on employer size.
A West Hollywood wrongful termination lawyer at Omega Law Group Accident & Injury Attorneys can identify which types of damages fit your firing and what evidence supports each one.
Is There a Cap on Wrongful Termination Damages in California?
There is no cap on wrongful termination damages in California for Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) claims filed in court, under the California Supreme Court’s 1982 ruling in Commodore Home Systems v. Superior Court. The court held that all relief generally available in civil cases, including punitive damages, can be awarded under FEHA.
Without a statutory limit, the evidence sets the ceiling. How much pay you lost, how long it may take to replace that income, and how the employer behaved all shape the final number.
Omega Law Group can help you estimate the highest amount you can get for wrongful termination by matching your firing to the claims that fit it, since the type of claim decides which damages are on the table.
What Damages Can You Recover for Wrongful Termination?
The damages you can recover for wrongful termination may include the remedies the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) lists for employment discrimination:
- Back pay for wages and benefits you lost after the firing.
- Front pay for future earnings, when returning to the job isn’t realistic.
- Repayment of out-of-pocket costs.
- Emotional distress damages for anxiety, humiliation, and other non-economic harm.
- Punitive damages for especially serious misconduct.
- Attorney’s fees and costs.
Back pay grows with each month you stay out of work or earn less than before, and front pay depends on how long the gap is likely to last. Omega Law Group can help you document both with pay stubs, tax records, and offer letters. For a closer look at each category, see “What can I get if I sue for wrongful termination?”
How Is Lost Pay Calculated After a Wrongful Termination?
Lost pay after a wrongful termination is calculated by comparing what you would have earned at your old job with what you earned, or could have earned, after the firing. The difference, plus lost benefits, becomes back pay up to trial or settlement, and front pay covers the gap after that.
For example, suppose you earned $5,000 a month, spent eight months looking for work, and then took a job paying $4,000 a month. Your back pay could include $40,000 for the months without work and $1,000 for each month at the lower wage, before adding lost health coverage, retirement matches, or bonuses.
Commissions, overtime history, and scheduled raises can raise the figure, while your employer may argue that severance pay should offset part of it. Omega Law Group can gather payroll records and benefits statements to build a lost pay calculation that holds up against the employer’s numbers.
How Do Federal Damage Caps Limit Wrongful Termination Awards?
Federal damage caps limit wrongful termination awards by combining compensatory and punitive damages into one limit of $50,000 to $300,000, based on employer size, according to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The combined limits under 42 U.S.C. § 1981a are:
- $50,000 for employers with 15 to 100 employees.
- $100,000 for employers with 101 to 200 employees.
- $200,000 for employers with 201 to 500 employees.
- $300,000 for employers with more than 500 employees.
Back pay is awarded separately and doesn’t count toward these limits. Because FEHA has no comparable caps, a state claim through the CRD can open the door to a larger recovery than a federal claim filed with the EEOC Los Angeles District Office. Omega Law Group can explain which route fits the facts of your case.
When Can Punitive Damages Increase a Wrongful Termination Award?
Punitive damages can increase a wrongful termination award when you prove by clear and convincing evidence that the employer acted with oppression, fraud, or malice, under Civil Code § 3294. For a company, an officer, director, or managing agent generally must have committed, authorized, or ratified that conduct.
Punitive damages punish the employer rather than repay your losses, so a jury may consider the employer’s financial condition. Public employers, such as a city or county, generally can’t be ordered to pay punitive damages under Gov. Code § 818.
Omega Law Group can look for the internal emails, decision records, and witness accounts that show who approved your firing and why, which is the proof punitive damages often turn on.
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What Can Reduce the Amount You Receive?
The amount you receive can be reduced if your employer proves comparable jobs were available and you didn’t make reasonable efforts to seek them, under California civil jury instruction CACI No. 3963. A jury would then subtract what you earned or could have earned elsewhere.
Other factors can shrink what reaches your pocket. If you signed an arbitration agreement when you were hired, your claim may go to a private arbitrator instead of Los Angeles County Superior Court, and taxes can take a share of back pay and emotional distress damages.
Omega Law Group can help you keep a job search record, from applications to interview dates, that answers a failure-to-mitigate defense.
Do Large Verdicts Predict What You Can Get?
Large verdicts don’t predict what you can get, because each award reflects one employee’s pay, losses, evidence, and employer conduct. Headlines and some AI-generated answers present a single “average” wrongful termination settlement, but those figures rarely say which laws, salaries, or years they cover.
Results vary widely even within one firm. Since 2016, Omega Law Group has recovered 14,500,000 in a gender discrimination and retaliation case. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. That figure reflects that case’s facts, not a benchmark for yours.
Wrongful Termination Damages FAQs
These answers cover common follow-up questions about the value of a wrongful termination claim.
Are Wrongful Termination Settlements Taxable?
Wrongful termination settlements are generally taxable because the IRS treats back pay as wages and taxes emotional distress damages that don’t stem from a physical injury, according to the Internal Revenue Service. Punitive damages are taxable as well, so how a settlement divides the money can affect your withholding.
Can You Get Your Job Back After Wrongful Termination?
You can get your job back after wrongful termination in some cases, since the CRD lists reinstatement among the remedies for employment discrimination. When the working relationship has broken down, a court may award front pay instead of ordering your return.
Can You Get More for Whistleblower Retaliation?
You can get more for whistleblower retaliation in some cases, because Labor Code § 1102.5 allows a civil penalty of up to $10,000 per violation, which goes to the employee for violations on or after January 1, 2024. A court may also award attorney’s fees to an employee who wins a claim under that section.
Who Pays the Attorney’s Fees in a Wrongful Termination Case?
The employer may pay the attorney’s fees in a wrongful termination case if you win a FEHA claim, because Gov. Code § 12965 lets a court award reasonable fees and costs to the prevailing employee. In a settlement, fees are usually negotiated as part of the total.
Find Out What Your Wrongful Termination Claim Could Be Worth
No statute sets the highest amount you can get for wrongful termination under FEHA; your pay history, your losses, and your employer’s conduct set it.
Our attorneys can put a value on each category of damages before you respond to a settlement offer, and you can sign your documents electronically without visiting an office.
Contact Omega Law Group for a free consultation to learn what your wrongful termination claim may be worth. You pay no attorney’s fees unless we recover compensation for you.
