We specialise in dealing with employment issues faced by senior employees. Our lawyers have negotiated multi-million pound contracts of employment and seven figure settlement payments.
Your Contract of Employment
This is likely to be one of most important contracts you enter into, yet few people take advice on them or negotiate their terms? We can help with both.
If there is a dispute, your Contract of Employment is the document lawyers go to first. We can help you to understand the small print, and also ensure that your contract actually says what you expect it to, protecting you if a dispute arises later.
At risk of redundancy
Being put at risk of redundancy does not mean that your departure is a foregone conclusion and it may make sense not to make it easy for your employer to dismiss you. Plan your strategy and do everything to protect and enhance your position, whether you are looking to stay, negotiate a severance payment or potentially litigate.
Our experienced team are here to help.
Disciplinaries or Grievances
Whether you face a disciplinary, a PIP or a performance review or are considering raising a grievance, you should always plan your approach and carefully consider your preferred outcome, in both the short and long term.
Our experienced team can explain your rights and support you if you have concerns at work, or if you are facing a formal process.
Been dismissed?
If you have more than 2 years’ service, not only do employers have to abide by the terms of your employment contract but they also have to have a fair reason to dismiss you, and they must ordinarily follow fair procedure in doing so.
If you have less than 2 years’ service employers cannot lawfully dismiss you for discriminatory reasons or in some other circumstances, for example if you are being dismissed because of whistleblowing, or because you have raised a health and safety concern.
We can help explain your rights and options, and support you in challenging an unfair or unlawful process.
Shares, share options and other benefits and incentives
We regularly hear that employees have been promised shares or share options or bonuses or other benefits which turn out to be empty or unsubstantiated promises.
We can help you challenge those empty promises if a relationship has turned sour. We can also check your rights and entitlements at the start of a scheme, or even to help draft it – often a cheaper and better option than only acting when there is a dispute.
Settlement Agreements
Settlement Agreements draw a line under claims that you might have against your employer to allow both parties to move forward. They are often offered by employers in redundancy programmes, or company re-organisations and can also be agreed as a way to settle a dispute, or to avoid an Employment Tribunal claim.
To be legally binding, the individual must need to be advised on the terms and effect of the Settlement Agreement by an independant adviser.
Our experienced team advise on hundreds of these each year, and consistently negotiate better deals for the employee than are first offered!
The good news is that typically employers pay some or all of your legal fees.
Mediation
If you have a dispute with your employer, mediation might be the quickest and most cost-effective way to resolve it.
Our experienced team have advised in a range of mediations and can advise you throughout the process, whether it is helping to guide you through your employer’s process, negotiating via ACAS on your behalf or representing you in formal judicial mediation at an Employment Tribunal.
We also have a network of qualified specialist mediators we can call upon as required.
Employment Tribunal and High Court Litigation
Generally litigation should be a last resort, but sometimes there is no alternative. Our team have considerable experience in litigating in the Employment Tribunal and other courts and can take you through the process, step by step.
We meticulously plan any litigation from the outset and honestly and accurately calculate your likely costs, value of your claim and chances of success.
See Employment Tribunal Costs for further information about typical costs.