Fact-checked by Grok 2 weeks ago

Severance

Severance is an American science fiction psychological thriller television series created by Dan Erickson for Apple TV+, in which employees at the fictional Lumon Industries undergo a voluntary surgical procedure that bifurcates their consciousness, creating distinct "innie" work personas with no recollection of their personal lives and vice versa.^[1] The series, executive produced and primarily directed by Ben Stiller, stars Adam Scott as Mark Scout, a team leader grappling with the implications of this severance as workplace anomalies unravel the procedure's facade of compartmentalization.^[2] Premiering on February 18, 2022, with its first season concluding on April 8 and a second season airing from January 17 to March 21, 2025, Severance has been renewed for a third season amid widespread acclaim for its exploration of corporate exploitation, identity fragmentation, and the ethical perils of memory manipulation.^[3] Critically lauded for its taut narrative and retro-futuristic aesthetic, the show garnered a 95% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes and dominated the 2025 Emmy Awards with 27 nominations and 8 wins, including recognition for outstanding drama series elements, underscoring its influence on contemporary discourse about work-life boundaries and technological overreach.^[4]^[5]

Employment and Business

Severance Pay

Severance pay refers to a lump-sum or periodic payment provided by employers to employees upon involuntary termination without cause, such as layoffs or restructuring, distinct from accrued wages or benefits. It is typically calculated based on length of service, with a common formula of one to two weeks' base pay per year employed, though amounts can vary by company policy and employee level. For instance, middle managers and executives often receive higher multiples, while entry-level roles may see minimal or no payout. This practice serves as a financial cushion during job transitions, empirically linked to reduced short-term economic hardship by supplementing unemployment benefits and extending income stability.^[6]^[7]^[8]^[9] Under U.S. federal law, severance pay is not mandated for private sector employees except in limited contexts, such as violations of the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, which requires covered employers with 100 or more full-time employees to provide 60 calendar days' advance notice for qualifying mass layoffs or plant closures; failure to notify obligates pay in lieu equivalent to 60 days' wages and benefits. State laws impose few additional requirements, with no broad mandates akin to Europe's statutory entitlements, leaving payouts largely discretionary or tied to employment contracts. Federal employees under certain civil service protections may qualify for statutory severance computed at one week's pay per year of service, capped at 52 weeks, but this does not extend to private firms.^[10]^[11]^[12]^[13]^[14] Severance payments are treated as supplemental wages by the Internal Revenue Service, fully taxable as ordinary income and subject to federal, state, and local withholding for income, Social Security, and Medicare taxes at the time of receipt. Recipients must report the full amount on Form W-2, with no deferral options unless structured through qualified plans, potentially increasing marginal tax burdens during unemployment. Empirical data indicate average U.S. severance packages equate to about $40,000 per laid-off worker at disclosing public companies, though medians skew lower; tech sector firms like Meta averaged over $88,000 per employee in 2022 layoffs, contrasting with manufacturing's more modest one-week-per-year norms. Packages scale with firm size and industry, larger enterprises and high-skill sectors offering more generous terms to mitigate talent loss and litigation risks.^[15]^[16]^[17]^[18]^[19]

Severance Packages and Agreements

Severance packages generally include financial payments alongside non-monetary benefits such as subsidized health insurance continuation under COBRA, outplacement counseling, and vesting of stock options or retirement contributions, structured to facilitate smooth employee transitions while securing employer protections.^[20]^[21] These elements are often contingent on the employee's execution of a release agreement waiving rights to sue for wrongful termination, discrimination, or other claims, thereby minimizing employers' exposure to litigation.^[22]^[23] Non-disparagement clauses and confidentiality provisions further limit post-separation disclosures, with employers viewing such packages as cost-effective alternatives to prolonged legal disputes.^[24]^[25] Employers deploy comprehensive packages particularly during mass layoffs or high-level executive departures to expedite separations and preserve operational focus, as evidenced by post-recession practices where mid-level packages aligned with tenure-based formulas of one to two weeks' pay per year of service.^[26]^[7] In exchange for these benefits, employees typically forgo claims under laws like the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, with empirical data indicating that such agreements reduce lawsuit filings by incentivizing voluntary waivers over adversarial proceedings.^[23]^[27] This approach allows firms to manage workforce reductions without mandatory statutory requirements, promoting market-driven efficiency in labor allocation.^[28] Recent trends in the 2020s, amid tech sector contractions, illustrate expanded packages to address talent retention risks and public relations concerns; for instance, Meta's 2022 layoffs offered U.S. employees 16 weeks of base pay plus two additional weeks per year of service, accelerated stock vesting, and six months of healthcare coverage, as disclosed in SEC filings.^[29]^[18] Google's similar 2023 packages provided a minimum of 16 weeks' pay with tenure add-ons and outplacement services, reflecting a strategy to mitigate backlash from rapid scaling reversals.^[30] However, embedded non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in these packages have drawn scrutiny for potentially deterring whistleblowing on corporate misconduct, though U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules prohibit provisions that impede reporting to regulators, with violations leading to fines as in a 2024 $10 million settlement.^[31]^[32] Such clauses empirically correlate with lower external disclosures of irregularities, balancing employer risk aversion against broader accountability concerns.^[33]^[34]

Legal Concepts

Severance in Contracts

The doctrine of severance in contract law permits courts to excise unenforceable provisions from an otherwise valid agreement, preserving the enforceability of the remaining terms when the invalid clause is not central to the parties' overall intent. This approach contrasts with entire contract invalidation, which occurs if the offending provision permeates the agreement or if severance would create an outcome neither party anticipated. Courts apply severance to uphold commercial predictability and respect bargained-for exchanges, provided the severed contract aligns substantially with the original mutual understanding.^[35]^[36] Under the Restatement (Second) of Contracts § 184 (1981), severance is appropriate if only a portion of the agreement violates public policy under § 178, and enforcement of the rest favors a non-wrongdoing party without disproportionate forfeiture. For instance, illegal or unconscionable terms, such as overly broad restraints, may be struck while core obligations like payment or delivery persist. In applications like non-compete covenants, courts have severed excessive geographic or temporal limits to enforce narrower protections of legitimate business interests, as seen in precedents evaluating whether the clause's invalidity taints the whole. This method fosters causal continuity in transactions by avoiding total failure from peripheral flaws, prioritizing efficiency over absolutist voiding.^[37]^[38] Critics argue that severance risks enforcing imbalanced or adhesive contracts by rewriting terms courts deem fairer, potentially undermining parties' explicit allocations and enabling exploitation in unequal bargaining scenarios. Historical analyses, such as Max Radin's 1942 critique, highlight how it imposes judicial preferences over literal text, while Robert Stern noted its arbitrary application across jurisdictions. Empirical patterns in case law show inconsistent outcomes, with some courts refusing severance to deter drafting of suspect clauses, reflecting tension between salvage and deterrence. Nonetheless, the doctrine endures in common law systems to mitigate over-penalization of technical defects, grounded in evidence that most contracts contain severability clauses signaling intent for partial survival.^[39]^[40]

Severance in Criminal Procedure

In United States federal criminal procedure, severance refers to the separation of trials for multiple offenses charged against a single defendant or for multiple defendants charged jointly, primarily to avert prejudice from improper joinder. Federal Rule of Criminal Procedure 14(a) empowers district courts to grant relief from prejudicial joinder by ordering separate trials of counts, severing defendants' trials, or providing alternative remedies upon demonstration that the joinder compromises the defendant's or government's substantial rights.^[41] This includes scenarios where unrelated charges risk jury inference of criminal propensity or where co-defendant evidence, such as confessions, implicates others without opportunity for cross-examination, potentially violating confrontation rights under the Sixth Amendment.^[42] Judicial discretion predominates, with courts weighing prejudice against the efficiency of joint proceedings, as mandatory severance is not required absent clear harm.^[43] The procedural rationale emphasizes due process by isolating evidence to prevent "guilt by association" or cumulative prejudice that could skew jury deliberations toward overall culpability rather than specific elements of each offense. An empirical study of approximately 20,000 federal criminal trials from 1999 to 2003 found that joinder of multiple counts against a single defendant resulted in conviction rates on all counts exceeding probabilistic expectations by up to 15%, with fewer acquittals overall, indicating systematic prejudice that severance mitigates by enabling focused fact-finding.^[44] This data supports a causal connection between unsevered joinder and adverse outcomes for defendants, as juries in multi-charge trials convict more comprehensively than in severed equivalents, thereby linking severance to enhanced verdict reliability and reduced appellate scrutiny for joinder-based errors.^[45] While direct metrics on post-severance reversal rates remain sparse, the lower incidence of prejudice in isolated trials logically curtails due process challenges, aligning with broader goals of evidentiary purity over expediency. Common applications arise in multi-defendant conspiracy prosecutions, where severance is pursued if one co-defendant's post-arrest statement implicates others, triggering Bruton v. United States (1968) concerns unless the statement is redacted or the trial divided to preserve confrontation rights. For example, in Zafiro v. United States (1993), the Supreme Court affirmed denial of severance for defendants asserting mutually antagonistic defenses in a drug distribution conspiracy, ruling that conflicting positions alone do not compel separation if limiting instructions can cure prejudice, though severe antagonism may necessitate it.^[46] Federal courts often sever in large-scale fraud or racketeering cases involving disparate roles, such as minor participants overshadowed by dominant co-conspirators' evidence, to avoid spillover effects.^[47] State jurisdictions generally parallel this framework but vary in thresholds; for instance, some mandate severance for unrelated offenses absent a common scheme, contrasting federal emphasis on case-specific discretion under Rule 14.^[48] Debates center on trading trial efficiency—joint proceedings economize resources and streamline witness testimony—for fairness, with proponents of joinder arguing it fosters coherent narrative presentation in interconnected crimes like conspiracies, reducing overall litigation burden.^[49] However, evidence indicates overuse of severance in complex multi-defendant matters, such as those exceeding a dozen participants, extends proceedings by 20-50% without proportional prejudice reduction, as curative instructions often prove effective and joint trials yield higher overall accountability.^[45] Critics contend this tilts toward defendant advantage, prolonging overcrowded dockets, while empirical patterns show joinder rarely precipitates reversible error when offenses share evidentiary overlap, prioritizing systemic throughput over individualized safeguards absent demonstrable bias.^[50]

Arts and Entertainment

Television Series

Severance is an American science fiction psychological thriller television series created by Dan Erickson for Apple TV+. Primarily directed and executive produced by Ben Stiller, the series premiered on February 18, 2022, with its first season consisting of nine episodes released weekly until April 8, 2022.^[2]^[51] The premise centers on employees at the enigmatic Lumon Industries corporation who voluntarily undergo a surgical procedure known as "severance," which bifurcates their consciousness into distinct "innie" and "outie" personas, preventing work-related memories from intruding into personal life and vice versa.^[52] This fictional mechanism explores themes of identity, corporate control, and the boundaries of work-life separation, depicting Lumon's macrodata refinement department where protagonists uncover unsettling truths about their divided existences.^[53] The series stars Adam Scott as Mark Scout, the team leader grappling with his severed state following personal tragedy, alongside Britt Lower as the rebellious new hire Helly R, Zach Cherry as Dylan George, and Tramell Tillman as supervisor Seth Milchick, with supporting roles by John Turturro, Christopher Walken, and Patricia Arquette.^[54] Production began after Apple TV+ greenlit the project in 2019, with Stiller directing six of Season 1's episodes.^[51] Season 2, comprising ten episodes, premiered on January 17, 2025, and concluded on March 21, 2025, continuing the narrative's escalation of intrigue within Lumon.^[1] Apple TV+ renewed the series for a third season in 2025, though Stiller confirmed he would not direct any episodes, opting instead to focus on executive producing amid pre-production.^[55]^[56] Critically acclaimed, Season 1 holds a 97% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 117 reviews, praised for its innovative premise blending suspense, drama, and satire on workplace dynamics.^[57] The series garnered multiple Emmy Awards, including wins in technical categories and acting for Britt Lower as Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series at the 2025 Primetime Emmys.^[58] Season 2 maintained strong reception with a 94% Rotten Tomatoes score.^[59] Apple TV+ reported Severance as its most-watched original series, surpassing Ted Lasso in unique viewers during Season 2's launch period from January 17 to February 17, 2025, with Nielsen data showing nearly 600 million minutes viewed in its U.S. debut week.^[60]^[61] Thematically, Severance critiques extreme work-life compartmentalization as a tool for corporate exploitation, portraying severance as eroding autonomy and fostering alienation, which resonates amid post-pandemic discussions on remote work and burnout.^[62] However, this dystopian lens overlooks empirical evidence that voluntary mental separation of professional and personal spheres—short of surgical intervention—can reduce cognitive load and improve focus, as supported by organizational psychology studies on boundary management.^[63] The series' appeal lies in its amplification of real tensions, such as employer overreach and employee disempowerment, without endorsing the procedure's feasibility or desirability in practice.^[53]

Films

Severance is a 2006 British horror-comedy film directed by Christopher Smith and co-written by Smith with James Moran.^[64] The plot centers on the sales team of Palisade Defence, a multinational weapons manufacturer, who embark on a team-building retreat in remote Hungarian woods, only to be stalked and attacked by escaped mental patients turned killers.^[64] Starring Danny Dyer as the laid-back team leader Jill, Laura Harris, and Tim McInnerny, the film blends slasher tropes with satirical jabs at corporate bonding rituals, portraying them as disruptive to individual productivity and genuine collaboration.^[64] Principal photography occurred primarily in Budapest and surrounding forests, emphasizing practical effects for gore sequences amid the survival horror setup.^[64] The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on 24 March 2006 and received a theatrical release in the United Kingdom on 25 August 2006, with limited distribution in other markets including a U.S. opening on 20 May 2007.^[64] Produced on an estimated budget of £5 million, it earned approximately $5.5 million worldwide, including $137,221 in North America and over $3.2 million in the UK.^[64] ^[65] This modest box office reflected its niche appeal within the horror genre, particularly among fans of low-budget British slashers critiquing modern workplace dynamics. Reception was generally positive for its tonal balance, with a 66% approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes based on 91 reviews, commending the witty script and energetic performances despite familiar plotting.^[66] Metacritic aggregated a score of 62 out of 100 from 23 critics, noting effective humor offsetting gore but criticizing underdeveloped characters.^[67] The film's commentary on enforced team exercises underscores causal disconnects between artificial group pressures and efficient, voluntary task-oriented work, aligning with broader skepticism toward pseudoscientific management fads unsubstantiated by productivity data. No other feature-length films titled Severance have garnered comparable critical or commercial attention, though minor short films and international productions exist with limited distribution.

Literature and Other Media

Severance is a 2018 debut novel by Chinese-American author Ling Ma, published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux on August 14.^[68] The narrative centers on protagonist Candace Chen, a Bible product coordinator in New York, amid a global pandemic known as Shen Fever, which induces victims to repeat their final routines in a state of undead inertia, enabling a critique of late-stage capitalism, office automation, immigrant isolation, and consumerist repetition.^[68] Ma's prose blends apocalyptic tropes with millennial workplace satire, drawing from her own experiences in finance and academia to underscore causal links between economic precarity and existential stagnation.^[69] The novel received critical acclaim, including a finalist nomination for the 2019 PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel, though empirical sales data reflect modest commercial performance, with Amazon rankings placing it at 161,984 amid low demand as of recent assessments.^[68]^[70] In video games, Severance: Blade of Darkness, developed by Rebel Act Studios and released in 2001 by Codemasters, features third-person action-adventure gameplay involving character selection among warriors who wield blades to sever foes in a dark fantasy world of procedural combat and environmental puzzles, emphasizing physical dismemberment mechanics over narrative severance themes.^[71] A more recent indie title, Severance (2024 on Steam), introduces co-operative horror elements where players investigate as survivors or embody a pursuing "Ghost," incorporating separation and evasion dynamics in multiplayer sessions limited to 1-5 participants.^[71] Comics bearing the title include the obscure 2001 one-shot Judika: Severance by Pendlespear Comics, scripted by Luke Payne with art by Lee Melton, which explores severance motifs in a niche superhero or adventure context, though it lacks widespread distribution or critical documentation beyond collector listings.^[72] Music with "Severance" as a standalone album or track title remains rare outside media tie-ins, with no major releases achieving verifiable chart impact or thematic prominence in isolation from visual adaptations.

Science and Medicine

Biological and Surgical Severance

In biological terms, severance denotes the physical disruption or cutting of anatomical structures, such as tissues, nerves, blood vessels, or limbs, resulting in separation that impairs continuity and function.^[73] This process occurs naturally in trauma or is induced surgically to excise diseased, damaged, or non-viable tissue, with causal outcomes including immediate hemorrhage, potential infection, and long-term functional deficits unless mitigated by repair or adaptation. Empirical evidence from surgical pathology emphasizes that such divisions trigger localized inflammatory responses and, in nerves, Wallerian degeneration distal to the cut site, limiting regeneration to peripheral systems while central nervous severance yields negligible regrowth.^[74] Surgical severance is exemplified by amputation, the elective or emergent transection of extremities to preserve life amid irreparable trauma, ischemia, or malignancy. In the United States, roughly 185,000 such procedures occur annually, predominantly lower-limb amputations linked to vascular disease and diabetes, with causal factors like peripheral artery disease elevating mortality risks post-operation by disrupting circulatory integrity. Globally, traumatic amputations contribute to rising incidence rates, from 11.37 million cases in 1990 to 13.23 million in 2019, reflecting increased survival from injuries via rapid severance in field medicine, though prevalence burdens—estimated at over 550 million affected individuals—underscore persistent disabilities without prosthetic intervention.^[75]^[76] Historical applications include psychosurgical techniques like the prefrontal lobotomy, pioneered by António Egas Moniz in 1935, which entailed severing prefrontal white matter tracts via alcohol injection or leukotome incision to alleviate severe psychiatric symptoms such as schizophrenia or depression. Widely adopted in the 1940s, with tens of thousands performed worldwide, the procedure promised behavioral calming but yielded inconsistent outcomes; retrospective analyses indicate transient symptom relief in under half of cases, often at the cost of apathy, cognitive decline, and epilepsy, with no causal mechanism for sustained neural reorganization.^[77]^[78] Its decline by the mid-1950s coincided with antipsychotic pharmacotherapy, highlighting empirical failures in broad tissue severance absent targeted pathophysiology understanding. Contemporary surgical severance prioritizes precision to minimize collateral damage, as in oncologic resections where nerves are transected to achieve clear margins, or vascular procedures severing affected segments to restore flow. For instance, vagus nerve severance in select gastrointestinal surgeries has correlated with reduced type 2 diabetes incidence in cohort studies, via altered autonomic signaling, though randomized trials remain limited. These evidence-based uses contrast historical overreach, favoring intraoperative imaging and microsuturing to repair or bypass severed elements, thereby optimizing causal recovery pathways over ablative finality.^[79]^[80]

Neurological and Procedural Contexts

The procedure of corpus callosotomy involves surgically severing the corpus callosum, the primary bundle of nerve fibers connecting the brain's hemispheres, to mitigate the spread of epileptic seizures in patients unresponsive to medication. First performed in the 1940s, it demonstrated efficacy in reducing seizure frequency by up to 70% in severe cases, though complete abolition occurs in only about 20-30% of patients.^[81] However, this severance induces a disconnection syndrome, wherein the hemispheres operate with limited intercommunication, leading to observable deficits such as unilateral neglect, where patients may fail to acknowledge stimuli processed exclusively by the non-dominant hemisphere.^[82] Roger Sperry's experiments in the 1960s, conducted on post-callosotomy patients, elucidated these effects through targeted visual presentations: objects flashed to the left visual field (processed by the right hemisphere) could not be named verbally, as language centers reside predominantly in the left hemisphere, revealing functional independence but also profound integration loss. This work earned Sperry the 1981 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, affirming the corpus callosum's critical role in unifying perception, motor control, and higher cognition. Split-brain outcomes include alien hand syndrome, where one hand acts contrary to conscious intent, and challenges in cross-hemispheric tasks like bimanual coordination, underscoring causal risks of fragmentation over any adaptive separation.^[83]^[84] Contemporary analogs, such as deep brain stimulation (DBS) for epilepsy, avoid permanent severance by delivering reversible electrical impulses to targets like the anterior nucleus of the thalamus, achieving seizure reductions of 40-60% without the irreversible disconnection of lesioning procedures. Yet DBS does not partition neural activity; it modulates networks, and lesion-based alternatives like amygdalohippocampectomy carry risks of memory impairment due to disrupted hippocampal connectivity. Functional MRI (fMRI) studies confirm that memory integration relies on distributed, dynamic connectivity across default mode and fronto-parietal networks, with disruptions yielding deficits in episodic retrieval and self-referential processing.^[85]^[86]^[87] Speculative notions of surgically isolating contextual memories—such as segregating professional from personal experiences—remain empirically unfeasible, as declarative memories encode via overlapping synaptic ensembles spanning cortical and subcortical regions, defying clean compartmentalization without inducing amnesia or identity incoherence. Lesion and imaging data indicate that any interventional severance would propagate deficits through thalamocortical loops, compromising causal chains of adaptive behavior and executive function, rather than enabling viable dual consciousness. Peer-reviewed analyses emphasize that while hemispheric specialization exists, whole-brain integration precludes lossless partitioning, with real-world epilepsy interventions prioritizing symptom mitigation over idealized cognitive divides.^[88]^[89]

Geography

Places in the United States

Severance, Colorado is a home rule municipality in Weld County, northern Colorado, located approximately 25 miles southeast of Fort Collins. Established as a post office community in the late 19th century with agricultural roots in farming and ranching, it experienced rapid suburban growth beginning in the 2000s due to proximity to the Denver-Fort Collins corridor and influx from urban migration. The population surged from 3,167 in the 2010 census to 7,683 in 2020, reflecting a 142.75% increase driven by housing development and commuting to nearby employment centers in Greeley and beyond; estimates place it at around 9,300 by 2023.^[90]^[91] Despite this expansion, Severance remains without major industrial or economic hubs, relying on residential zoning and small-scale agriculture, with no significant manufacturing base per local economic profiles.^[90] Severance, Kansas, is a small city in Doniphan County, northeastern Kansas, near the Missouri border, founded in 1869 along the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway to support grain shipping and farming in the region. Incorporated shortly after its platting, it peaked at 424 residents in the 1900 census amid railroad-driven prosperity but has since declined due to rural depopulation, farm consolidation, and migration to urban areas like nearby St. Joseph, Missouri. The 2020 census recorded 76 inhabitants, with recent estimates as low as 46 amid ongoing shrinkage at rates near 2-4% annually, underscoring broader trends in Great Plains small towns where out-migration exceeds natural growth.^[92]^[93] The economy centers on agriculture, with limited services and no prominent commercial or industrial activity.^[94]

Places Elsewhere

No notable geographical locations named Severance exist outside the United States. Global databases of place names, including Geotargit, record instances of the name exclusively within U.S. states such as New York and Kansas, with no entries for Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe, Australia, or other regions.^[95] This scarcity aligns with the name's likely derivation from English surnames rather than widespread toponymic adoption internationally, as evidenced by limited historical records of estates or localities bearing the name abroad. Empirical reviews of gazetteers and archival sources confirm low notability, with no population centers, historical manors, or cultural sites documented under this designation.^[96]

People

Individuals with the Surname Severance

Frank Hayward Severance (November 28, 1856 – January 26, 1931) was an American historian and librarian focused on the early history of western New York.^[97] He served for over four decades as secretary and librarian of the Buffalo Historical Society, where he curated collections of regional artifacts and edited publications documenting Niagara Frontier settlements, military campaigns, and indigenous interactions.^[98] Severance authored works such as Old Trails on the Niagara Frontier (1893), which detailed verifiable trails, forts, and events from the 17th and 18th centuries based on primary records and site surveys, contributing to empirical preservation of local heritage without reliance on unsubstantiated narratives.^[98] Harold Craig Severance (July 1, 1879 – September 2, 1941) was an American architect known for designing prominent Art Deco skyscrapers in New York City during the 1920s and 1930s.^[99] His projects included the 71-story 40 Wall Street (1930), temporarily the world's tallest building at 927 feet, featuring innovative steel framing and setbacks to maximize light and comply with zoning laws.^[99] Severance also designed the Nelson Tower (1931) and collaborated on early high-rises, emphasizing structural efficiency and aesthetic verticality in response to urban density demands.^[100] Joan Marie Severance (born December 23, 1958) is an American actress and former fashion model with a career spanning film and television from the late 1980s.^[101] Raised in Houston, Texas, she began modeling at age 18 in Paris under Elite Models before transitioning to acting, appearing in over 40 productions including the action-comedy See No Evil, Hear No Evil (1989) alongside Richard Pryor and [Gene Wilder](/page/Gene Wilder), and the thriller Lethal Weapon 2 (1989).^[101] Her roles often featured in genre films and series like Wiseguy (1989–1990), showcasing versatility in dramatic and comedic parts grounded in scripted performances rather than improvised elements.^[102]

Other Structures and Uses

Architectural and Institutional Structures

Severance Hall, located in Cleveland, Ohio, serves as the principal concert hall for the Cleveland Orchestra and exemplifies early 20th-century neoclassical architecture. Completed in 1931 and designed by the firm Walker and Weeks, the structure features an exterior of Ohio sandstone and Indiana limestone in Georgian and neoclassical styles, blending elements reminiscent of the nearby Cleveland Museum of Art.^[103] The building was funded in part by patrons John L. Severance and Elisabeth Huntingdon DeWitt Severance, who pledged $1 million initially, naming it in their honor as a permanent home for the orchestra.^[104] Internally, it includes Art Deco detailing and acoustics optimized for orchestral performance, with renovations in the 1960s and 2000s enhancing its functionality while preserving the original design.^[105] Severance Hospital, a major teaching institution affiliated with Yonsei University in Seoul, South Korea, represents one of Asia's pioneering modern medical facilities. Its origins trace to 1885 as Gwanghyewon, Korea's first Western-style hospital established by American missionary Horace Newton Allen, evolving into Chejungwon and renamed Severance Memorial Hospital in 1904 following a significant donation from American philanthropist Louis H. Severance.^[106] Today, it operates as part of the Yonsei University Health System with over 2,400 beds across multiple specialized units, including cancer and rehabilitation centers, and is recognized for comprehensive care and international patient services.^[107] The hospital's institutional structure emphasizes integrated medical education and research, maintaining its status as a leading university-affiliated provider in the region.^[108] Other lesser-known structures include Severance Hall at Wellesley College in Massachusetts, a renovated residence hall offering lake views and historic traditions since its construction, and Severance Gymnasium at the College of Wooster in Ohio, dedicated in 1912 as the campus's first building beyond the central quadrangle.^[109]^[110] These reflect localized naming conventions tied to donors or historical figures but lack the scale of the primary examples.

References

[1]
Severance - Apple TV+ Press
Jan 17, 2025 · Mark Scout (Adam Scott) leads a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a severance procedure that surgically divides their memories.Severance · View show details · View full cast & crew · News
[2]
Apple TV+ unveils teaser trailer for new workplace thriller ...
Dec 16, 2021 · In “Severance,” Mark Scout (Adam Scott) leads a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a severance procedure, which surgically ...
[3]
Praise Kier! Apple's workplace thriller “Severance” lands season ...
Mar 21, 2025 · In “Severance,” Mark Scout (Scott) leads a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a severance procedure that surgically ...
[4]
Severance | Rotten Tomatoes
Rating 95% (239) Discover reviews, ratings, and trailers for Severance on Rotten Tomatoes. Stay updated with critic and audience scores today!
[5]
Apple lands record-breaking 81 Emmy Award nominations with ...
Jul 15, 2025 · Severance became this year's most-nominated series with 27 nominations, and The Studio made history as the most-nominated freshman comedy series ...
[6]
severance pay | Wex | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute
Severance pay is a fee paid to an employee after an involuntary termination. In most circumstances, severance pay is not required.
[7]
What's a Normal Amount of Severance Pay? A Guide for Employees
May 22, 2025 · A common rule of thumb is one to two weeks of pay for every year of service. For example, if you've been with a company for 10 years, you might expect between ...Severance Pay · Employee Tenure And Position · Retirement And Pension...
[8]
Average Joe's Guide to Typical Severance Packages
Jul 7, 2025 · Severance pay: 1-2 weeks per year of service (average 3-6 months total); Health benefits: COBRA continuation coverage; PTO payout: Cash for ...Key Components Of A Typical... · Legal Requirements &... · Frequently Asked Questions...
[9]
Employment relations and dismissal regulations - PubMed Central
For the unemployed, greater severance payments could directly protect against financial strain and its harms by reducing the decline in income when ...
[10]
US Severance Pay Laws: State-by-State Requirements
Aug 7, 2025 · There is no requirement in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for severance pay. Severance pay is a matter of agreement between an employer and ...
[11]
Severance Packages for Employees & Legal Implications - Justia
Oct 18, 2025 · Severance pay when an employee leaves a company is not legally required but can be based on an employment agreement or union contract.
[12]
WARN Act - elaws - WARN Advisor
WARN requires 60 calendar days' written notice. The law makes no provision for any alternative such as pay in place of a notice.
[13]
When to WARN: Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act
Alternatively, an employer may provide "pay in lieu of notice" by compensating employees for 60 days' wages and benefits (or a pro-rated portion thereof).
[14]
Severance Pay - OPM
Severance pay under 5 USC 5595 is authorized for covered full-time and part-time employees who are involuntarily separated from Federal service.
[15]
What if I lose my job? | Internal Revenue Service
May 29, 2025 · Severance pay and unemployment compensation are taxable. Payments for any accumulated vacation or sick time also are taxable. You should ...
[16]
https://www.hrblock.com/tax-center/income/wages/is-severance-taxable/
[17]
Severance Is Just One Cost Companies Pay During Layoffs
Aug 7, 2024 · At US-listed companies with these payments, the most common average severance package was worth about $40,000 per employee, according to an ...1. Severance Payments · 2. Reduced Productivity · Worker Productivity Tends To...
[18]
Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, Twitter severance packages ...
Jan 20, 2023 · Severance packages vary from company to company, ranging from the minimum legally required to longer-term packages that include health-care ...
[19]
How Much Severance Should Companies Pay? - LHH
Feb 13, 2025 · How Companies Calculate Severance · 39% by position level and years of service · 20% by age, length of services, level, ability to find new work ( ...
[20]
Severance Package Explained: The Layoff Payoff - Investopedia
Apr 4, 2025 · Severance Pay: Employers may offer one to weeks of severance pay for every year the employee worked for the company. Middle managers and ...
[21]
What's Typically in a Severance Package - Kiplinger
Apr 28, 2023 · Generally, you'll get one week to four weeks of pay per year of service, but it is common for employers to pay out two weeks of pay for each ...
[22]
What employers need to know about severance packages
Jan 30, 2025 · A severance or exit package is a bundle of benefits offered to employees who are laid off, terminated, or, under specific circumstances, voluntarily leave ...
[23]
Severance Best Practices Lessen Litigation Risk - SHRM
"Companies have learned to leverage severance packages to lessen the risk of employee litigation," says Rob Saam, senior vice president and career transition ...
[24]
Severance Agreements: Everything Employers Need to Know
Jan 27, 2025 · A severance agreement is a binding contract between an employer and an employee that outlines the terms of the separation when the working relationship ends.
[25]
Using Severance Agreements to Mitigate Risks
Rating 5.0 (8) Mar 24, 2025 · A severance agreement specifically exists to mitigate the risks that apply when the employer-employee relationship terminates.
[26]
Typical Severance Packages: What Employers Should Know - Indeed
Mar 25, 2025 · It's usually based on the employee's salary. The typical severance pay employers provide is one to two weeks for every year the employee worked, ...
[27]
Why Employers Offer Severance to Avoid Lawsuits
Oct 7, 2015 · By offering severance payments, employers aim to minimize their exposure to legal claims, maintain compliance with labor laws, and safeguard ...
[28]
Executive Severance: Key Considerations - Levine & Blit, PLLC
May 30, 2025 · Nevertheless, employers commonly offer severance packages to minimize the risk of future litigation and to secure specific legal protections ...<|control11|><|separator|>
[29]
layoff - SEC.gov
Nov 9, 2022 · Severance. We will pay 16 weeks of base pay plus two additional weeks for every year of service, with no cap. •PTO. We'll pay for all ...
[30]
How severance packages for laid-off tech employees compare
Nov 21, 2022 · Compensation: Googlers who lost their jobs will receive a minimum of 16 weeks' pay with an additional two weeks for every year at Google.
[31]
Whistleblower Protections - SEC.gov
Jun 24, 2024 · Rule 21F-17 violations are not limited to language contained in severance agreements, non-disclosure agreements, or confidentiality agreements.
[32]
SEC Takes on Nondisclosure Agreements to Protect Whistleblower ...
Jan 26, 2024 · The SEC fined an employer $10 million in a settlement over charges that nondisclosure and confidentiality agreements impeded reporting of ...
[33]
Non-Disclosure Agreements and Whistleblowers - NWC
NDAs are common across numerous industries. However, such agreements can be used to silence whistleblowers in order to keep illegal activity under wraps.
[34]
[PDF] Assessing the Impact of Non-Disclosure Agreements and Forced ...
Our research points to the need for a wider conversation and examination of the fundamental rationale behind NDAs and forced arbitration clauses.<|separator|>
[35]
SEVERANCE OF CONTRACT - The Law Dictionary
Definition and Citations: Saving the part of the contract that remains after removing parts of it. Possible where (1) the agreement contains more than one ...
[36]
severable contract | Wex | US Law | LII / Legal Information Institute
A severable contract is a contract with two or more agreements that are distinct enough to where the unenforceability or breach of one does not nullify the ...
[37]
Restat 2d of Contracts, § 184 - Lexis
(1) If less than all of an agreement is unenforceable under the rule stated in § 178, a court may nevertheless enforce the rest of the agreement in favor of ...
[38]
Sharpen your blue pencil: the doctrine of severance in employment ...
Aug 15, 2019 · Severance is a doctrine of general contract law, not specific to the employment field. However, over the last century, a body of case law ...Missing: definition | Show results with:definition<|separator|>
[39]
[PDF] Severability in Statutes and Contracts - Affordable Care Act Litigation
times, criticism of severability doctrine is hardly new. Max Radin described its flaws in 1942, and Robert Stern wrote an important critique almost sixty ...
[40]
Severance Clauses in contracts (striking out illegality in agreements)
Severance clauses set out a procedure which the parties intend to take where a court rejects the bad parts of a contract.Severance Clause · Example Of Severance In... · Severing Terms Of Contracts
[41]
Rule 14. Relief from Prejudicial Joinder - Law.Cornell.Edu
Rule 14 allows courts to order separate trials or other relief if joinder prejudices a defendant or government, and may order in camera inspection of defendant ...
[42]
Rule 14. Relief from Prejudicial Joinder
Rule 14 allows courts to order separate trials of counts, sever defendants’ trials, or provide other relief if joinder prejudices a defendant or government.
[43]
[PDF] Joinder & Severance of Offenses
Severance under Rule 14 requires a showing of prej- udice. That provision, however, is operable only in the case of a proper joinder under Rule 8.
[44]
The Impact of Joinder and Severance on Federal Criminal Cases
The Impact of Joinder and Severance on Federal Criminal Cases: An Empirical Study. Authors. Andrew D. Leipold · Hossein A. Abbasi. First Page. 349. Abstract.Missing: reversals | Show results with:reversals
[45]
[PDF] The Impact of Joinder and Severance on Federal Criminal Cases
What is missing from the discussion is an empirical measure of the impact of joinder on criminal cases. The next Part provides a first attempt to quantify ...
[46]
Zafiro v. United States | 506 U.S. 534 (1993)
Although acknowledging other lower court cases saying that a severance is required when defendants present "mutually antagonistic defenses," the Court of ...
[47]
Severance Considerations in Multi-Defendant US Federal ...
Severance refers to the separation of defendants or charges into distinct trials to prevent prejudice in a multi-defendant case.
[48]
JOINDER AND SEVERANCE - Office of Justice Programs
This review of joinder and severance under the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure explains procedure for the joinder of offenses and the joinder of defendants.
[49]
"Joint Trials of Defendants in Criminal Cases: An Analysis of Efficien ...
Joint trials usually, although not always, help the prosecutor to get convictions, and thereby modify the balance of advantage in criminal trials. Disputes over ...
[50]
[PDF] Rethinking Criminal Joinder: An Analysis of the Empirical Research ...
' The analysis is relevant to criminaljoinder in state prosecutigns to the extent that the state rules are patterned after the Federal Rules of Criminal ...
[51]
'Severance' Thriller at Apple TV Plus Gets Premiere Date, Teaser
Dec 16, 2021 · Apple TV Plus announced that upcoming thriller series “Severance” will premiere with two episodes on Feb. 18, followed by new episodes ...Missing: TV+ premise
[52]
'Severance' Offers a Surreal, Allegorical Twist on Work-Life Balance
Feb 18, 2022 · But Severance is less interested in scattering bread crumbs around its plot than creating arresting images to evoke its themes.
[53]
Severance's workplace brutality isn't sci-fi. Neither is its worker power.
Apr 9, 2022 · Americans are · While the workplace sitcom has been a staple of TV for decades, no show about work has captured quite so accurately how damaging ...
[54]
'Severance': Ben Stiller's Apple Series Gets Premiere Date & First ...
Dec 16, 2021 · The Apple TV+ drama Severance is set to premiere on Feb. 18 via its streaming service. A first look trailer featuring stars Adam Scott, Patricia Arquette, John ...Missing: creator | Show results with:creator
[55]
https://9to5mac.com/2025/10/20/severance-season-3-heres-everything-we-know-so-far/
[56]
Severance's Production Update Is A Major Blow For Season 3
Oct 18, 2025 · Ben Stiller Will Not Direct Severance Season 3 · Severance Season 3 Will Have A Hard Time Finding Ben Stiller's Replacement.
[57]
Severance: Season 1 - Rotten Tomatoes
Season 1 on Apple TV+ ... Release Date: Feb 18, 2022. Watch Now on apple-tv-plus-us.
[58]
Britt Lower Emmy win: Severance actress upsets Kathy Bates
Rotten Tomatoes (@RottenTomatoes) ...<|separator|>
[59]
Severance: Season 2 - Rotten Tomatoes
Rating 94% (225) Genre: Drama , Mystery & Thriller , Sci-Fi. Original Language: English. Release Date: Jan 17, 2025. Watch Now on apple-tv-plus-us · Advertise With Us. About ...
[60]
Apple Says 'Severance' Is Now More Popular Than 'Ted Lasso'
Feb 20, 2025 · Apple has revealed that "Severance" has become its most-watched Apple TV+ series ever, surpassing previous record-holder "Ted Lasso" in unique viewers.
[61]
Severance is a rare Apple streaming success, based on ... - 9to5Mac
Feb 13, 2025 · Severance managed to hit number four on the top 10 original series chart, with almost 600 million minutes viewed.
[62]
This Timely Series Is A Nightmarish Critique Of Work-Life Balance
Feb 16, 2022 · Severance is the hit TV series everyone is talking about. The show focuses on four workers who choose to undergo a radical “severance pro. by ...
[63]
Real or Sci-Fi? 'Severance' and the Risks of Work-Life Balance
May 10, 2022 · Within the central metaphor for work-life balance, Severance offers many subtler critiques about corporate culture and employer-employee ...
[64]
Severance (2006) - IMDb
Rating 6.4/10 (42,600) A team-building weekend in the mountains of Eastern Europe goes horribly wrong for the sales division of the multi-national weapons company Palisade Defence ...Plot · Full cast & crew · Severance · Release info
[65]
Severance (2007) - Box Office and Financial Information
Opening Weekend: $8,316 (6.1% of total gross). Legs: 3.51 (domestic box office/biggest weekend). Domestic Share: 2.3% (domestic box office/worldwide).
[66]
Severance | Rotten Tomatoes
Rating 66% (91) Synopsis Members (Danny Dyer, Laura Harris, Tim McInnerny) of the Palisades Defense Corp. sales group arrive in Europe for a team-building exercise. A fallen ...
[67]
Severance Reviews - Metacritic
Rating 62% (23) Severance is a British horror-comedy that, from the get-go, has two distracting strikes against it.
[68]
Severance - Macmillan Publishers
Finalist for the 2019 PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel ... "Ling Ma's novel Severance is an astute combination of workplace novel and apocalyptic tale.
[69]
'Severance' Is the Apocalyptic Millennial New York Immigrant Story ...
Aug 14, 2018 · Severance first began as an apocalyptic short story. Initially, the impetus for writing anything apocalyptic (it was already cliché, even by ...
[70]
9781922330642: Severance - BookScouter.com
Rating 4.0 (6) Severance book is in low demand now as the rank for the book is 161,984 at the moment. It's a low rank, and the book has not much sales on Amazon. When is the ...
[71]
SEVERANCE on Steam
Severance is a 1–5 player online co-op horror where one of you becomes the Ghost, and the rest must investigate, survive, and escape. Play as The Ghost. Pause ...
[72]
Judika: Severance ( 2001 Pendlespear Comics) comic books
In stock $12.95 deliveryJudika: Severance ( 2001 Pendlespear Comics) comic books ... Published Jan 2001 by Pendlespear Comics. ... Written by Luke Payne. Art by Lee Melton. Cover by Carlos ...
[73]
Wound Dehiscence - StatPearls - NCBI Bookshelf
Dehiscence is a partial or total separation of previously approximated wound edges, due to a failure of proper wound healing.
[74]
Peripheral Nerve Reconstruction after Injury: A Review of Clinical ...
Recent surgical options including nerve transfers demonstrate promise in improving outcomes for proximal nerve injuries and experimental molecular and ...3. Nerve Physiology · 4. Grading Nerve Injury · 6. Nerve Repair
[75]
15 Limb Loss Statistics that May Surprise You - Access Prosthetics
Oct 18, 2017 · 185,000 people have a amputation each year. This means that 300 to 500 amputations are performed every day. 3. „1,558 military personnel lost a ...
[76]
The global burden of traumatic amputation in 204 countries and ...
Oct 20, 2023 · The prevalence of traumatic amputation showed the same pattern, with an increase in prevalence number from 370.25 million in 1990 to 552.45 ...
[77]
A brief history of psychosurgery: Part 1 – From trephination to lobotomy
Apr 5, 2013 · Frontal lobotomy was developed in the 1930s for the treatment of mental illness and to solve the pressing problem of overcrowding in mental ...
[78]
Lessons to be learnt from the history of lobotomy
Dec 12, 2022 · Lobotomy was initially considered a breakthrough in the treatment of mental illness, and approximately 3,000 lobotomies were carried out in ...
[79]
Association of vagus nerve severance and decreased risk of ...
Dec 9, 2016 · We assessed the risk of developing type 2 diabetes in peptic ulcer patients without and with complications by surgical treatment received in a ...
[80]
Peripheral Nerve Surgery | Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery
Peripheral nerve surgery focuses on addressing various nerve-related disorders, including nerve injuries, compressions, tumors, and chronic neuropathic pain.
[81]
Editorial: The legacy of Dr. Roger W. Sperry: current advances in ...
Commissurotomy, known in lay terms as “split-brain,” alleviated pharmacologically intractable severe epilepsy (Bogen and Vogel, 1962; Bogen, 1985).
[82]
Roger W. Sperry – Nobel Lecture - NobelPrize.org
Added evidence for involvement of the right hemisphere in higher intellectual processing came from study of a case of congenital absence of the corpus callosum ...
[83]
Roger Wolcott Sperry - NobelPrize.org
Jul 23, 1997 · Essentially, Sperry and his students showed that if the two hemispheres of the brain are separated by severing the corpus callosum (the large ...
[84]
The “split brain” and Roger Wolcott Sperry (1913–1994)
His Nobel prize-winning “Split-Brain Experiments”confirmed the role of the corpus callosum in interhemispheric transfer of information.
[85]
Deep Brain Stimulation and Drug-Resistant Epilepsy: A Review of ...
Introduction: Deep brain stimulation is a safe and effective neurointerventional technique for the treatment of movement disorders.
[86]
Deep brain stimulation creates informational lesion through ... - Nature
Dec 13, 2022 · Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is effective in managing many brain disorders, such as epilepsy, Parkinson's disease, and essential tremor. DBS ...
[87]
Brain connectivity changes associated with episodic recollection ...
Oct 24, 2022 · Numerous episodic memory fMRI studies have identified several brain regions that exhibit activation changes associated with aging. Evidence ...
[88]
The Neuroscience of Severance: What's Real? What's Fake?
Jan 23, 2025 · What if you could completely separate your work and personal life—with the help of a brain implant? That's the unsettling premise of ...Missing: feasibility | Show results with:feasibility
[89]
Could "Severance" Ever Become Reality? - Psychology Today
Apr 27, 2022 · The Apple TV+ series Severance poses an interesting question: What if we could fully separate memories from one part of our life from another part of our life?
[90]
Severance, CO | Data USA
In 2023, Severance, CO had a population of 9.3k people with a median age of 33.2 and a median household income of $127257. Between 2022 and 2023 the ...
[91]
Severance, CO Population by Year - 2024 Update - Neilsberg
Jul 30, 2024 · From 2000 to 2010, Severance's population increased by 2,337 (269.55%), according to Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program. For the same ...
[92]
Severance, Kansas Population 2025
Severance has a 2025 population of 76. Severance is currently declining at a rate of 0% annually and its population has decreased by -2.56% since the most ...
[93]
https://censusreporter.org/profiles/16000US2064025-severance-ks/
[94]
Leona & Severance - Doniphan County KS
Severance is a city in Doniphan County, Kansas, United States. The city population is approximately 95. Severance was laid out in 1869 and was incorporated as ...
[95]
How many places are named Severance? - Geotargit
Severance can be found in 1 country. The northern most place is in the region New York in America. The southern most place is in the region Kansas in America.
[96]
Severance Family History - FamilySearch
Canada. 103 people in Family Tree. https://edge.fscdn.org/assets/static/media/invalid-icon-medium ... We found 1,415,724 records for the Severance last name.
[97]
DR. F.H. SEVERANCE, HISTORIAN, IS DEAD; Was Considered an ...
Frank H. Severance, descendant of one of America's oldest families and an au- thority in historical and literary fields, died at his home here late ...
[98]
Old Trails on the Niagara Frontier by Frank H. Severance
Aug 5, 2011 · Severance is a historical account written in the late 19th century. The work explores the largely untold history of the Niagara region from ...
[99]
H. C. SEVERANCE, 62, ARCHITECT, IS DEAD; Bank of Manhattan ...
Craig Severance, noted New York architect, who designed famous skyscrapers, including the Bank of Manhattan Building, 40 Wall Street, New York, once the world's ...
[100]
H. Craig Severance and William van Alen | Wired New York
New York Buildings · Nelson Tower at 450 Seventh Avenue (1931) · 40 Wall Street (1930) · 400 Madison Avenue (1929) · Montague-Court Building at 16 Court Street ( ...
[101]
About Joan - Joan Severance
Joan Severance was born and raised in Texas. At the age of 18 and at the sole urging of John Casablancas of ELITE models she went to Paris, France to begin ...
[102]
Joan Severance - Biography - IMDb
Joan Severance was born and raised in Houston, Texas. At the age of 18 and at the sole urging of John Casablancas of Elite models, she went to Paris, France.
[103]
SEVERANCE HALL | Encyclopedia of Cleveland History
Feb 15, 2021 · The architecture of Severance Hall is a cross between the Georgian Neo-Classical style represented by the CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART across the ...
[104]
Severance Music Center - The Cleveland Orchestra
Severance Music Center, home to the Cleveland Orchestra, is considered one of the world's most beautiful concert halls, located at Case Western Reserve ...
[105]
Severance Hall Renovation & Expansion
Severance Hall, designed by Walker and Weeks, is a neo-classical building of Ohio sandstone and Indiana limestone, completed in 1931 as the permanent home ...
[106]
Severance Hospital: Bringing Modern Medicine to Korea - PMC - NIH
"Severance Hospital shines among the pages of history as the birthplace of Western medicine in Korea. Throughout the course of medical development in Korea, ...
[107]
Overview | Severance Hospital
Severance leads the medical industry in Korea. The strong network between these institutions as well as their specialized medical services.
[108]
History | Severance Hospital
Severance Hospital began in 1885 in Gwanghyewon, Korea's first Western-style hospital founded by American missionary Allen.
[109]
Severance Hall (SEV) - Wellesley College
Severance is a unique and newly-renovated building with many historic traditions. Students can take in views of the lake and the greenspace all around the ...Missing: institutions | Show results with:institutions
[110]
Severance Gymnasium
Dedicated in 1912, Severance Gymnasium was the first academic building constructed outside of the Quinby quadrangle.