Employment lawyers hear this question pretty frequently. Getting fired rarely feels fair, and sometimes it really isn’t fair. But it does not always follow that the recently-ousted employee has a good legal case against his or her former employer. Generally, unless there is an employment contract or other binding document such as an employee handbook that gives the employee specific rights, there are only two reasons an employer might face legal consequences for an improper firing: Discrimination against an employee who is in a protected class Protected classes are defined by statute and include race, gender, age, religious belief, and disability. (At