Our pricing for bringing employment tribunal claims on behalf of employee clients will always depend on the specifics of the case and the type of claims involved. Our fees for defending a claim for unfair and/or wrongful dismissal would normally be within the following range:
Simple case: £7,500-£12,500 (excluding VAT)
Medium complexity case: £12,500-£20,000 (excluding VAT)
High complexity case: £20,000-£35,000 (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
- Bringing claims against multiple respondents (for example, individual employees or directors of the employer respondent, or different group companies)
- Making or defending a costs application
- Complex preliminary issues such as whether the claimant is disabled (if this is not agreed by the parties) or whether the Tribunal has jurisdiction to hear the claim(s)
- The number of witnesses and documents
- If it is an automatic unfair dismissal claim e.g. if an employee is dismissed after blowing the whistle on their employer
- Allegations of discrimination which are linked to the dismissal
There will be an additional charge for attending a Tribunal Hearing, which would normally be between £1,500-2,500 per day (excluding VAT) depending on the case and the overall pricing structure that we agree with our employee client at the outset. Generally, we would expect a straightforward or medium complexity unfair and/or wrongful dismissal case to be listed for 1 or 2 days, whereas a more complex unfair/wrongful dismissal claim (for example one also involving whistleblowing and/or discrimination allegations could be listed for between 3 and 10 days. A multi-day hearing will therefore incur significantly higher overall fees.
Disbursements
Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees and Counsel’s fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.
Counsel’s fees will always depend on the choice of counsel, their level of experience and the complexity of the case and preparation involved. We would discuss this with you at the outset of the case and obtain quotes from leading specialist employment barristers’ chambers (who we work closely with) in order to provide you with a range of options. We always seek to ensure that cost effective but skilled counsel with an appropriate level of experience is instructed on any case we are bringing. Counsel’s fees will always comprise a brief fee (for preparation for the hearing and attendance on the first day of the hearing), with a daily refresher fee for attendance on any subsequent days.
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 employee’s claim
- Exploring settlement and negotiating settlement throughout the process
- Preparing the employee’s 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 the bundle of documents for the hearing
- 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 depending on your individual needs.
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 up to four weeks. If the claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take 4 to 12 months, depending on when the hearing is listed by the Tribunal. The more complex the claim is (and consequently, the more days need to be allocated to the Final Hearing) the later it is likely to be listed by the Tribunal. Consequently, more complex claims normally take longer to conclude than more straightforward claims. The above timescales are 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.