Employment Tribunal Solicitors

This is our pricing for bringing and defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal.

We charge for this work on the basis of hourly rates ranging from £250-£295 per hour (plus VAT at 20%).

The legal advisers who work on Employment matters can be viewed here.

Stage 1 – PreAction

A typical unfair dismissal dispute ; our legal fee range is £850-£1554 (plus VAT at 20%).

Typically this work will take 3-6 weeks.

This fee is in relation to the following work:

• 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.
• Entering into pre-action correspondence or an attempt to reach settlement.

Stage 2 – Commencing action

A typical unfair dismissal claim; our legal fee range is £1500-£2655 (plus VAT at 20%).

This fee is in relation to the following work:

• Preparing claim or response and arranging issue at the Tribunal
• Reviewing and advising on claim or response from other party

Typically this work will take 4-8 weeks.

Stage 3 – Exploring settlement

Our legal fee range for this work is £500-£1070 (plus VAT at 20%).

Typically this work will take 2-3 weeks.

This fee is in relation to the following work:

• Exploring settlement and negotiating settlement throughout the process

Stage 4 – Completing tribunal process to final hearing

The vast majority of cases settle through negotiations and do not proceed to trial. Settlement can be achieved at any stage throughout the procedure.

Our legal fee range for this work is £7,000-£16,000 (plus VAT at 20%).

Typically this work will take 9-18 months dependent on the Tribunals timetable.

This fee is in relation to the following work:

• 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 the stages above are not required, the fee will be reduced.

You may wish to handle the claim or aspects of the claim yourself and only have our advice in relation to some of the stages. This can also be arranged on your individual needs.

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. The above is just an estimate and we will of course be able to give you a more accurate cost estimate and timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses.

Disbursements:

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties. We handle the payment of any relevant disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

Counsel’s fees estimated between £1250 to £2000 per day (depending on experience of the advocate) (plus VAT at 20%) for attending a Tribunal Hearing (including preparation).

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

Assumptions:

• Fees and timescales indicated above are indicative; however every claim is unique and vary considerably in terms of evidence, numbers of witnesses, extent of documentation etc.
• The timescales above are a general indication only and each Tribunal case and employment court varies in terms of overall timescale to trial.

It would not normally be necessary to undertake other work or incur other costs other than those described above. However, we would be very happy to provide you with a more tailored quote for all stages of your particular case once we know about your specific circumstances.

We want to give you the best possible service. However, if at any point you become unhappy or concerned about the service we have provided, please inform us immediately so that we can do our best to resolve the problem.