I don’t want to go into too much details here but basically I need legal advice asap due to my employer’s actions. Where do you advise me to go, in person, in Taipei/Northern New Taipei where they speak English? Free or paid, doesn’t matter. I’ll pay if needed. I don’t need much time, maybe an hour or less, but preferably very soon.
note: I tried LAF but they’re booked until 22nd of September.
Marco?
Polo? 
Jokes aside, who’s Marco?
@Marco often recommends his lawyer to those in need! I will save him the trouble here by forwarding the contact information
Awesome, thanks!
an hour will cost you about 5000nt. a lawyers letter will cost 10,000nt (on average)
It helps if you @ the person
Many foreigners run into problems with employers. Hiring a lawyer for thousands of NTD only makes sense if the issue involves so much money that a lawyer’s fees are a drop in the bucket. There’s a good chance others on Forumosa have gone through similar situations and could give you a realistic sense of what to do. Just because someone is a lawyer, doesn’t necessarily mean that they are experts in labor law so you’d be wasting a lot of money for nothing. Similar to people who’ve hired a lawyer to handle their APRC applications. It’s a no brainer yet they hand over fists full of $$$ thinking that the lawyer will somehow do a better job.
I tell people to head to the city/county hall first to talk with the labour department. It’s free and they offer arbitration and can help consolidate the evidence first if arbitration fails.
Since it’s related to employment, you can go to the labor department in the city where you work. Check the department’s website for the schedule for free legal advice (only certain days/times). Making an appointment may be necessary. The consultation will be quite short. They do have interpreters (not necessarily with any legal training). I would do some research beforehand and go with specific questions prepared.
When the lawyers aren’t there, you should still be able to get general advice from either staff or volunteers, and you can ask the staff to arrange mediation between you and your employer. If there’s an administrative violation over which the department has jurisdiction (and which can be proven), you can also request a labor inspection (you may need to go to a different office for it, but someone will have the information).