In Lockett v. Sister-2-Sister Solutions, Inc., the North Carolina Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal of a breach of contract claim based on the plaintiff’s employment.  In this case, the plaintiff had an employment contract with the defendant that provided that he could only be fired for cause.  The Court held that “an employment relationship that can be terminated by the employer only for cause would succeed in removing an employment contract from the presumption of at-will employment.”  Therefore, the plaintiff can have a breach of contract claim for being terminated.

On the other hand, the plaintiff did not present enough evidence to bring his contract claim and North Carolina Wage and Hour Act claim against the company’s owner directly.  Thus, the claims against the individual owner were properly dismissed.

Categories: Judicial Decisions Tags: At-Will Employment, Breach of Contract, Case Commentary, Employment Contract, Labor and Employment, NC Court of Appeals, NC Wage and Hour Act

In Franco v. Lipposcience, Inc., the North Carolina Supreme Court affirmed per curiam an NC Court of Appeals decision regarding employment at will.  The COA had issued a split-decision earlier this year, with Judge Wynn writing for the majority and Judge Erwin dissenting.  The plaintiff, who had been the VP of Marketing, was terminated and sought to bring a breach of contract claim.  At issue was whether he had a partial employment contract, or whether he was an ordinary at-will employee.

Most employees are employed at will, which means they can be fired for almost any reason and without regard to the quality of their performance.  There are three general exceptions: (1) the employee has a contract with the employer, either individually or through a labor union; (2) federal and state statutes have created exceptions prohibiting employers from discharging employees based on impermissible considerations such as the employee’s age, race, sex, religion, national origin, or disability, or in retaliation for filing certain claims against the employer; and (3) the state courts have created a public-policy exception to the employment-at-will rule.

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Categories: Judicial Decisions Tags: Breach of Contract, Case Commentary, Employment At-Will, Employment Contract, Labor and Employment, NC Court of Appeals, NC Supreme Court