If a company fires you the day before you reach your vesting cliff, you can sue them for breach of contract, if you were performing well. Yes, you can sue them

If a company fires you the day before you reach your vesting cliff, you can sue them for breach of contract, if you were performing well. Yes, you can sue them (and win, though you'd probably want to settle) even if your contract says they can fire you for any reason. On a separate note, it's the same underlying principle behind why people are wrong when they talk about the DAO's contract meaning that the hacker was allowed to steal. No judge is going to enforce a contract clause that allows you to steal. And if you were performing well but were fired right before your cliff, a judge can find that your employers were acting in bad faith, etc. The underlying principle is that contracts are subject to reasonable interpretations by judges. Your other point about getting yourself fired makes no sense (you're ignoring the cliff, then month to month vesting schedule that is typical).