While some terminations are illegal or "wrongful" such as violating a contract or a law such as a termination in violation of the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), most terminations in Nevada will not be illegal.  If you believe your termination may have been wrongful, you may want to consult with an attorney.  Since most terminations are lawful, often unemployment compensation is the only benefit an employee receives once they are terminated. Reno, Nevada unemployment lawyer and attorney.

Nevada employees are entitled to receive unemployment benefits as long as they are not terminated for "misconduct."  Misconduct is a legal term and often an employee is entitled to unemployment pay even if the employer tries to claim an employee was properly terminated or was fired for misconduct.  While the process to apply for Nevada unemployment is fairly easy, it becomes more complicated if the employee is initially denied unemployment benefits.  Once an employee applies for unemployment, they will receive a phone interview.  The purpose of the interview is to make sure the employee qualifies (such as working long enough in Nevada) and to determine whether any misconduct occurred.  It is important to remember that the interviewer is mostly interested in any misconduct.

After the hearing, the Referee that heard the case will mail a decision.  There is still another avenue of appeal if the employee lost.  The Appeal is to the Board of Review.  Again the time frame to file the appeal is very short.  This appeal is a true appeal and will be very short and often as short as 5 minutes per side.  This is not a new hearing and no new evidence will be presented.  Instead, only argument is allowed as to why the Referee applied Nevada unemployment law wrong.  Many employees now want to get an attorney to do this appeal, but it may now be too late since only the evidence presented at the hearing is allowed and if there was not enough evidence or the argument was not fully prepared and presented, then there may not be enough evidence to argue at this appeal level.  But when in doubt, always contact an attorney and it is a good idea to do it before the first hearing.  Reno Unemployment rights and benefits in Nevada, Reno, Sparks, and Carson City with lawyers and attorneys.

Unlike the initial appeal where a Referee will make a determination, an appeal to the Board of Review does not mean that a hearing will be given.  A hearing is granted in only 2 situations.  The first is where the Referee reversed the initial decision from the person that conducted the phone interview.  For example, if the initial decision was in favor of the employee, then the Referee reversed and decided the employee is not entitled to Nevada unemployment benefits, then a hearing will be given.  The second situation where an appeal will be granted is when the Board is convinced a hearing is needed since they want to review the decision.  Therefore it is necessary to state why an appeal is needed and why the Board should hear the appeal.  In this Appeal (even if by right), it is necessary to state the legal reasons why the Referee misapplied the law. Reno Attorney and lawyer for Nevada Unemployment rights.

There is still one more "appeal" avenue if the Board of Review denies an employee unemployment benefits.  However this appeal is very complicated as it is to a Nevada State District Court.  This appeal is not only complicated, the burden on the person filing the appeal is very, very high in order to win.  Since this is an appeal, the District Court will not hear any new evidence and will only determine whether the Nevada Unemployment Department made a clear application of law.  This is why it is very important to be properly prepared for the first initial "appeal" (hearing) before the Referee.

It should also be mentioned that it is very important that the employee keeps filing with the Unemployment Department that they have been applying for work even if they have initially been denied unemployment.  If the employee does not do this and later is awarded unemployment benefits, the employee may not collect for the time frame they did not file with the Unemployment Department.