Tallahassee Employment and Civil Rights Lawyer
Massey & Duffy, PLLC represents employees and people whose civil rights have been violated in Tallahassee and throughout the Big Bend, including Leon, Gadsden, and Wakulla Counties. We handle discrimination, retaliation, whistleblower, wage, and Section 1983 claims in state and federal court.
Where We Are Located
Our only office is at 855 East University Avenue in Gainesville. We do not have an office in Tallahassee. Consultations, document review, and case management are handled by phone, email, and video, and we travel for depositions, mediations, hearings, and trial when a case requires it.
Claims We Handle for Tallahassee Workers
Discrimination based on race, sex or pregnancy, age, disability, or religion
Police misconduct, false arrest, and First Amendment retaliation
State and Local Government Employees
Tallahassee is home to state agencies, universities, and local governments, and public employees have rights that private-sector workers do not. Florida's Whistle-blower's Act, section 112.3187, Florida Statutes, protects public employees who report certain violations of law, gross mismanagement, malfeasance, or gross waste of public funds to the right person or agency. The deadlines are short. A state agency employee generally must file a complaint with the Florida Commission on Human Relations within 60 days after the retaliatory action. A local government employee may have 60 days to use a local complaint procedure or, if the local government has none, 180 days to file suit.
Public employees may also have a claim for First Amendment retaliation when they are punished for speaking as private citizens on matters of public concern, and for discrimination under Title VII, the ADA, the ADEA, and the Florida Civil Rights Act.
Where Tallahassee Cases Are Filed
State court cases arising in Leon County are filed in the Second Judicial Circuit, which also covers Franklin, Gadsden, Jefferson, Liberty, and Wakulla Counties. Federal cases are filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Tallahassee Division. Many discrimination claims must first go through a charge with the EEOC or the Florida Commission on Human Relations.
Deadlines Matter
An EEOC charge in Florida generally must be filed within 300 days, and a complaint under the Florida Civil Rights Act within 365 days. Federal civilian employees generally must contact an agency EEO counselor within 45 days. Some claims, such as public-employee whistleblower claims, have even shorter deadlines. If you think your rights were violated, talk to a lawyer promptly.
Talk With Us
Use our contact page to request a consultation, or call Massey & Duffy, PLLC at (352) 505-8900. We respond to inquiries 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
This page is general information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Our only office is in Gainesville, Florida. Results depend on the facts and law of each case; past results do not guarantee a similar outcome.