Should I sign my severance agreement? For most long-tenured, high-earning employees, the answer is: not yet. If you were let go for reasons that have nothing to do with your performance or a company-wide layoff—and especially if a bonus, commission, or equity payout was coming—the first severance offer usually leaves money on the table.
Here is how to tell whether you’re in that position, and when it makes sense to have a Florida severance agreement lawyer negotiate before you sign.
Four Signs You Should Not Sign Your Severance Agreement Yet
1. You Are a High Earner
Severance is usually calculated in weeks of pay, so every additional week is worth more the more you make. At a $250,000 salary, one week of pay is roughly $4,800. Securing even a few additional weeks—or getting a bonus or equity included—can mean tens of thousands of dollars.
2. You Have Long Tenure
If you’ve been with the company five years or more, the standard formula often undervalues what you’ve contributed. Long tenure also tends to mean a stronger performance record, deeper institutional knowledge, and more for the company to lose if your departure turns into a dispute.
3. A Bonus, Commission, or Equity Payout Was Coming
Being let go shortly before a bonus is paid, commissions are due, or stock vests is one of the most common ways employees lose significant compensation. If your severance agreement doesn’t address that money, signing it almost always means giving it up.
4. You Weren’t Let Go for Performance or a Layoff
When a company terminates a strong performer individually—”restructuring your role,” “going in a different direction,” or no real reason at all—the severance is often less about a formula and more about buying a release of claims. That is where there is the most room to negotiate. Formula-driven, company-wide layoffs typically have less flexibility, and terminations tied to documented performance issues offer less leverage.
Attorney Brett Kaplan explains what he looks for when deciding whether a severance offer can be improved:
The Biggest Red Flag: Your Agreement Is Silent on Your Bonus, Commissions, or Equity
For high earners, the most expensive mistake isn’t in the fine print—it’s what the agreement leaves out. Before you sign, check whether it addresses:
- Your annual or quarterly bonus, including a pro-rated bonus for the part of the year you worked
- Earned commissions on deals you closed or sourced before your last day
- Unvested stock options, RSUs, or other equity—and whether any vesting can be accelerated or your exercise window extended
- Deferred compensation or retention payments you were promised
- Accrued PTO—Florida doesn’t require a payout, but if your policy provides one, it should be paid in addition to severance, not folded into it
Many bonus and equity plans require you to be employed on the payment or vesting date. That doesn’t necessarily end the conversation. Whether a bonus or commission was earned depends on the plan’s language and how it was administered, and Florida law allows courts to award attorney’s fees in actions for unpaid wages. When the timing of a termination looks designed to avoid a payout, that compensation becomes a central part of the negotiation.
What You Give Up When You Sign
In exchange for severance, you release your legal claims against the company—typically including claims under Title VII, the ADA, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the FMLA, the Florida Civil Rights Act, and the Florida Private Whistleblower Act. If you were let go after raising a concern, taking protected leave, or because of your age, you may be releasing a retaliation claim or wrongful termination claim worth more than the severance itself.
That release is what the company is paying for. The more valuable it is to them, the more leverage you have.
If the agreement also adds a non-compete, that’s another thing of value you’re giving up. Florida’s 2025 CHOICE Act allows non-competes of up to four years for higher earners, so a new restriction can directly limit your future income—and should be negotiated or paid for.
Why You Shouldn’t Negotiate With HR Yourself
If you push back on your own, HR will almost always tell you the package is “standard” and “non-negotiable.” That’s not because there’s no room to move—it’s because HR’s job is to close out your separation on the company’s terms, and HR usually doesn’t have the authority to change them anyway.
When you hire an employment lawyer, the negotiation moves out of HR and to the company’s lawyers—its in-house counsel or outside employment counsel. Those are the people who evaluate legal risk and have the authority to approve a better deal. Lawyer-to-lawyer, the conversation shifts from “this is our policy” to what the company is actually getting for its money and what it would cost to resolve the issues on the table. That is how severance deals get done.
Is Your Severance Offer Fair?
Many employers use a formula—often a set number of weeks of pay per year of service. For long-tenured, high-earning employees who weren’t part of a layoff, that formula is a starting point, not a ceiling. The questions that drive a better result are:
- What compensation are you losing because of the timing of your termination?
- Why were you really let go, and what does the record show about your performance?
- What legal claims would you be releasing?
- How much does the company want a clean, quick exit?
Employers routinely improve severance terms when an experienced employment lawyer is involved. See our case results for examples.
How Long Do You Have to Sign?
Florida law doesn’t set a deadline—your employer does—and once a lawyer is involved, a short extension to review and negotiate the agreement is common. If you are 40 or older, the federal Older Workers Benefit Protection Act generally requires that you be advised in writing to consult a lawyer, given at least 21 days to consider the agreement (45 days in a group layoff), and given 7 days to revoke after signing. Revoking simply cancels the agreement—and the severance with it. It doesn’t reopen negotiations, so the 21 days before you sign are the time to negotiate. Use that time—don’t let a deadline push you into signing before you understand what you’re leaving behind.
When to Have a Lawyer Negotiate Your Severance Agreement
A severance negotiation is most likely to pay off if you:
- Are a high earner or have a complex compensation package
- Worked for the company for 5+ years
- Had a bonus, commission, or equity payout coming that the agreement doesn’t cover
- Were let go for reasons unrelated to performance or a company-wide layoff
If that describes you, talk to a severance agreement negotiation lawyer before you sign. We’ll tell you whether there’s room to improve the offer, identify what you’re owed, and take the negotiation past HR, directly to the company’s counsel.
We Make the Difference in Your Story.
Should I Sign My Severance Agreement? FAQs
Can I Get My Bonus if I’m Let Go Before It’s Paid?
It depends on your bonus plan’s language and how it has been applied, but it is often negotiable. Many plans require employment on the payment date, yet when an employee is let go shortly before a bonus is paid—especially for reasons unrelated to performance—a full or pro-rated bonus is frequently part of a negotiated severance.
What Happens to My Unvested Stock if I’m Terminated?
Your equity plan and award agreements control, and unvested equity is usually forfeited at termination. But accelerated vesting, continued vesting, or an extended window to exercise options can be negotiated as part of a severance agreement—and for many high earners, equity is worth more than the cash severance.
Is My Severance Negotiable if I Was Part of a Layoff?
There is usually less flexibility in a formula-driven, company-wide layoff. There is typically far more room when you were let go individually, for reasons unrelated to your performance—particularly if you’re a long-tenured, high-earning employee.
Can I Negotiate My Severance Agreement With HR Myself?
You can try, but HR will almost always say the offer is standard and non-negotiable—and HR usually lacks the authority to change it. Hiring an employment lawyer moves the negotiation to the company’s counsel, who can actually approve better terms.
Will My Employer Withdraw the Offer if I Ask for More?
It’s rare. Employers expect employees to have their severance agreements reviewed, and no employer has ever revoked an offer for any client of Kaplan Employment Law. A professional, well-supported counteroffer is a normal part of the process.
Can I Negotiate My Severance Agreement After I Sign It?
No. Once you sign, the terms are set. If you’re 40 or older, you may have 7 days to revoke, but revoking simply cancels the agreement—and your severance. It doesn’t give you a second chance to negotiate. The time to negotiate is before you sign.
Should I Sign a Severance Agreement if I Think I Was Fired Illegally?
Not before you have your potential claims evaluated. If you were let go for discriminatory or retaliatory reasons, the severance offer may be far less than your claims are worth—and signing will usually release them.
Talk to a Florida Severance Agreement Lawyer Before You Sign
You only get one chance to negotiate your severance. At Kaplan Employment Law, Attorney Brett Kaplan negotiates severance agreements for high-earning professionals throughout Florida—directly with the company’s counsel, not HR—making sure bonuses, commissions, and equity aren’t left behind. Schedule a consultation before you sign.
