Here, we provide answers on the most common questions clients have with respect to our legal fees structure. We operate with utmost transparency.
Of course! Our friendly and knowledgeable client services reps are available to answer your questions 24/7/365.
Employment Tribunal (unfair/wrongful dismissal)
We aim to provide you with the best information on the fee ranges for bringing and defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal based on our experience in this area of law. This information provided here is a guide only and you may be required to pay additional services which are described later in this guide.
Simple case: £6500 - £11,000 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%). These are cases with 1 day trial.
Medium complexity case: £8,000 - £20,000 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%). These are cases with up to 3 days trial.
High complexity case: from £18,000 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%). These are cases with 3 or more days trial.
We charge based on an hourly rate which varies depending on the member of staff dealing with your matter. Our hourly rate is £201 (excluding VAT, charged at 20%) . The seniority of the members of staff dealing with your case will depend on its complexity. We will discuss this with you when you instruct us.
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 of £650 per day (excluding VAT, charged at 20%).
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 claim 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 and if some of stages above are not required, the fee will be reduced. You may wish to handle the claim yourself and only have our advice in relation to some of the stages. This can also be arranged on your individual needs.
Disbursements:
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties. Common examples of disbursements are court fees, traveling expenses or fees of a barrister or expert. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
Counsel's fees is estimated between £1,000 to £5,000 per day excluding VAT, charged at 20% (depending on experience of the advocate) for attending a Tribunal Hearing (including preparation).
Payment of other parties’ costs:
The most common situation in Employment Tribunal is that each party is responsible for their own legal fees/costs. However, there are circumstances where a party may be ordered to pay the costs of the other party or costs of a non-lawyer dealing with the case. We aim to explain how this event may happen when we are instructed to work for you.
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 12 weeks. If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take up to 36 months. This is just an estimate. We will of course be able to give you a more accurate timescale once we have more information on your case, the tribunal’s diary and as the matter progresses.
Responsibility for this work: