Law for business

Our pricing for bringing and defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal

Simple case: £0-£10,000 (excluding VAT)

Medium complexity case: £0-£11,000 (excluding VAT)

High complexity case: £0-£12,000 (excluding VAT)

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
• Defending claims that are brought by litigants in person
• Making or defending a costs application
• Complex preliminary issues such as whether the claimant is disabled (if this is not agreed by the parties)
• The number of witnesses and documents
• If it is an automatic unfair dismissal claim e.g. if you are dismissed after blowing the whistle on your employer
• Allegations of discrimination which are linked to the dismissal

There will be an additional charge for attending a Tribunal Hearing. We generally assist you in instructing a Barrister (‘Counsel’) to represent you as this is more cost-effective. Counsel’s fees will form part of a separate costs quotation. If we represent you at a Tribunal Hearing this will based on a fee of £1,500 for a one day hearing (excluding VAT).

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

Key stages

The fees set out above cover all of 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 the claim or response
• Reviewing and advising on the 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 any Preliminary or Final Hearings, including drafting and sending instructions to Counsel

The stages set out above are an indication and if some of stages above are not required, the fee will be reduced. You may wish to handle the claim yourself and only seek our advice in relation to some of the stages. This can also be arranged on your individual needs.

Funding

For Claimant’s, some home insurance policies include Legal Expenses Insurance which may cover you in the event of a claim.

For Respondent’s, some business insurance policies include insurance which may cover legal expenses and/or compensation in the event of a claim.

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 and the timetable set by the Employment Tribunal. If a settlement is reached during pre-claim conciliation, your case is likely to take 4 – 6 weeks. If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take 32 weeks. 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.

Expertise

Our team has over ten years of collective experience in delivering high quality work in all matters relating to employment law.

We have one member of the team who will work on your matter. Regardless of who works on your matter, they will be supervised by Elizabeth Judson, Associate Solicitor and Head of Employment. Elizabeth may at times be assisted by a Trainee Solicitor.

Elizabeth Judson is the head of the employment department and has over 10 years’ experience in both contentious and non-contentious employment work, specialising in acting for and representing employers.

Elizabeth qualified as a solicitor in 2009 after gaining a Distinction in the Legal Practice Course from BBP. She completed her training contract at Actons Solicitors in Nottingham and worked at different firms before moving on to join our firm in 2015.