Employment law services and costs

As a Firm we seek to ensure that we offer the most suitable method of funding for our clients.

EMPLOYMENT LAW ADVICE 

Employees

We offer employment law advice on numerous issues which arise in relation to a person’s employment   or working arrangements. Depending upon the nature of the assistance required work is undertaken based upon an hourly charge rate of between £200 per hour (excl. VAT) to £250 per hour (excl. VAT).

It is often the case that advice provided at an initial fixed fee consultation for up to 1 hour, charged at between £200 and £250 (excl. VAT) is adequate to deal with any query.

If assistance is requested, over and above, an initial consultation, fees will vary depending upon the amount of work required. Estimated charges are between £500 and £2,500 (excl. VAT). If additional assistance is needed a revised estimate of the likely charges    will be provided.

Employers

As a firm we offer a bespoke service for Employers in relation to all their employment law and/or health and safety needs. Details are available upon request from the Employment Team.

BRINGING OR DEFENDING EMPLOYMENT CLAIMS

Privately Paying

Our charges to act in relation to bringing or defending employment claims depends upon the complexity of the case.

The range of charges will also depend upon whether the Claim settles or ends at an early stage or proceeds to a full contested trial.

Likely charges, paying privately, are as follows:

Standard case: £5,000 to £10,000 (excl. VAT) 

Medium complexity case: £6,000 to £15,000 (excl. VAT)

High complexity case: £10,000 to £25,000 (excl. VAT)

There will be an additional charge for representation at a Tribunal hearing (including preparation):

• If represented by a solicitor, the charge is between £1,000 and £2,500 per day (excluding VAT).
• If Counsel is instructed the charge will be between £2,000 and £4,000 per day (excluding VAT), depending on the experience of the advocate.

Generally, we would estimate 1 to 15 days for the Trial depending upon the complexity of the case. Factors that could make a case more complex:

• If it is necessary to make or defend applications to amend claims or to provide further information about an existing claim;
• Making or defending a costs application;
• Complex preliminary issues such as whether claimant is disabled (if not agreed by the parties);
• Number of witnesses and documents;
• If it is an automatic unfair dismissal claim e.g. dismissed after whistleblowing on your employer;
• Allegations of discrimination which are linked to the dismissal;
• Dismissal due to TUPE procedures;
• Where the dismissal is linked to alleged discrimination.

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Court and medical expert fees.

Key stages

The fees set out above cover all the work in relation to the following key stages of a claim:

• Taking your initial instructions, reviewing the papers and advising you on merits and likely compensation (this is likely to be revisited throughout the matter and subject to change);
• Entering into pre-claim conciliation where this is mandatory to explore whether a settlement can be reached;
• Preparing claim and/or response;
• Reviewing and advising on claim or response from other party;
• Exploring settlement and negotiating settlement throughout the process;
• Preparing or considering a schedule of loss;
• Preparing for (and attending) a Preliminary Hearing;
• Exchanging documents with the other party and agreeing a bundle of documents;
• Taking witness statements, drafting statements and agreeing their content with witnesses;
• Preparing bundle of documents;
• Reviewing and advising on the other party’s witness statements;
• Agreeing a list of issues, a chronology and/or cast list;
• Preparation and attendance at Final Hearing, including instructions to Counsel;

The stages set out above are an indication of the potential steps which may need to be taken in a Tribunal claim.

You may wish to handle the Claim yourself and only have our advice in relation to some of the stages. This can be arranged based on your individual needs, charged at the hourly rates between £200 and £250 per hour (excl. VAT).

How long will my matter take?

The time that it takes from taking your initial instructions to the final resolution of your matter depends largely on the stage at which your case is resolved.

If a settlement is reached during pre-claim conciliation, your case is likely to take 2 to 16 weeks.

If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take a year to reach the Final Hearing. This is just an estimate and we will of course be able to give you a more accurate timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses.

Damages Based Agreement (OBA)

Claimants

In addition to acting on a privately paying basis, we can offer Claimants a No Win No Fee Service, subject to assessment of the claim, under a Damage Based Agreement (OBA).

Under the OBA, you would not be liable for our costs if you are unsuccessful with your claim. Your only liability would be in relation to any expenses (disbursements), if any.

If you are successful then we would limit our costs to 35% of your settlement or compensation, inclusive of VAT, which will normally be deducted from the settlement sum at conclusion.

The OBA covers attendance at one Case Management Hearing and other routine hearings. It does not cover representation at a contested hearing or the Final Hearing. There will be additional charges for attending a contested hearing or the Final Hearing, either by a solicitor or Counsel as detailed above.

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Court and medical expert fees. These would not be covered under the OBA, but we would notify you when these are likely to arise and the amount.

Respondents

We act for Employers in defending claims made against them. This would be undertaken on a private basis, subject to an hourly rate with likely charges as detailed above.

As costs are not normally recoverable in Tribunal cases, we are unable to act for a Respondent under a OBA