Employment
We represent employers at Employment Tribunals in unfair or wrongful dismissal cases. It’s important to instruct us as soon as possible as you have a limited time to issue your claim (3 months less a day and subject to the ACAS pre-action conciliation process from the matter about which you are complaining) and we will need time to prepare and file your claim.
Please note, Be aware that before a claim can be issued in the Tribunal, you must first go through a process of pre-action conciliation with ACAS to explore settlement. We can advise you at that stage and may be able to avoid a claim being issued at all.
To give you as much clarity as possible, these are the stages of a claim and what we charge at each stage.
Initial appointment
We charge a fixed fee of £100 plus VAT for a 30 minute appointment. Any further time is billed at an hourly rate of £250 plus VAT.
Advising and assisting in the ACAS pre-action conciliation
We charge £265-£530 plus VAT to take your instructions and review your initial documentation.
Preparing your formal claim
We charge £530-£1,060 plus VAT
- Discuss the circumstances of your potential claim
- Take detailed instructions on the allegations
- Advise you on the potential claim
- Prepare a formal claim form
Responding to the Tribunal
We charge £530-£1,060 plus VAT
- Discuss any response to the claim
- Respond to the Tribunal Agenda
- Attend any preliminary hearing
Preparations for the hearing
We charge £1,060-£2,120 plus VAT.
- Deal with the different directions made by the Tribunal at the preliminary stage.
- Prepare your Schedule of Loss.
- Agree and prepare a list of issues or casting list for witnesses.
- Collate documents for the evidence to be relied upon.
- Deal with disclosure of documents to the Respondent.
- Interview potential witnesses and prepare draft witness statements.
- Finalise the hearing bundle and witness statements.
Final preparations for the hearing
We charge £530-£795 plus VAT
- Exchange witness statements with the Respondent.
- Advise on the other side’s witness statements.
- Instruct a Barrister to advocate on final hearing if necessary.
Handle settlement proposals
We charge £265-£530 plus VAT.
We deal with any settlement proposals or COT 3 agreement via ACAS.
Factors that affect your costs
Each case is different and some are more complex than others. Factors that increase the cost include:
- If there are multiple allegations (different claims)
- The seriousness of the claim
- The amount of documentation needed
- The number of potential witnesses
- Whether a Barrister is needed
- The number of hearings
- The length of any final hearing
- Whether an appeal is needed at any stage
- Whether the case settles and at what stage of proceedings
Disbursements
Disbursements are costs payable to third parties. We handle the payment of disbursements on your behalf.
If you need a Barrister to prepare and attend your Tribunal Hearing, fees can be between £200 to £250 per day depending on the experience of the advocate. There is also a fixed fee on delivering the Brief of between £500 and £750 plus VAT.
Time Scales
If you reach a settlement during the ACAS pre-action conciliation, you can expect your case to take about 4 weeks. It might be extended by another 2 weeks if you’re close to settlement at that 4 week stage.
If your claim goes to a Final Hearing, you can expect it to take 12-30 weeks. This depends on the case, the length of the hearing, any preliminary hearing and the availability of the Tribunal.
