Preserve what matters. Do not create a second problem.
A general checklist for organizing workplace records carefully, lawfully, and without uploading anything to this site.
A
Atlas Law Center
Care-led counsel. Federal litigation discipline.
Records to organize
A dated timeline written in your own words while events are fresh.
Your own offer letter, handbook acknowledgments, pay records, schedules, evaluations, discipline, accommodation requests, and separation documents.
Emails, messages, or letters you are lawfully authorized to possess and that directly concern your employment.
Names of potential witnesses and a short note about what each person observed.
Original files and clean copies organized by date, with no edits to the original content.
Boundaries to respect
Do not take trade secrets, customer records, patient information, privileged communications, or documents you are not authorized to access.
Do not guess at a deadline or wait for an internal process to finish before asking about an outside filing deadline.
Do not alter, annotate, crop, or overwrite the only copy of a document or message.
Do not secretly record a conversation without first confirming the law that applies where everyone is located.
Do not post allegations or evidence publicly while a dispute is developing.
Keep the timeline simple
For each event, record the date, who was involved, what happened, who witnessed it, what document supports it, and what changed afterward. Separate facts you personally observed from conclusions or assumptions.
This page provides general information, not legal advice. It does not authorize access to restricted records, determine what evidence is admissible, preserve a filing deadline, or create an attorney-client relationship. This site does not receive or store documents through this checklist.
Start with a conversation
Your consultation is free. Your deadline is not.
Employment claims carry strict filing deadlines. Talk to an attorney while every option is still open.
No fee for the initial review. No attorney-client relationship until confirmed in writing.