OUR
FEE STRUCTURE
As you may appreciate, no two matters are the same. The circumstances surrounding a client’s situation and their desired outcomes or objectives will always differ. Therefore, the work and advice needed to achieve those outcomes will also differ.
OUR RATES
The basis for our charges for any work carried out which are hourly charging rates (excluding VAT at 20%) which are reviewed annually but accurate as of November 2019, is:
- £220.00 (plus VAT at 20%) per hour for a solicitor of more than 5 years’ post qualification experience;
- £90.00 (plus VAT at 20%) per hour for Legal support.
ADVICE AND REPRESENTATION FOR AN EMPLOYMENT TRIBUNAL RANGE OF COSTS
Prior to instructing any legal adviser to represent you (as an individual) or the Company in an employment tribunal claim/defence you should establish whether you may be able to use the benefit of any trade union membership (if you are an individual) or insurance cover for the necessary work. For individuals, in terms of insurance, it is important to check out any household insurance policies you may have or bank account terms in particular. For Employers, consider whether you have any commercial disputes insurance or review any other providers of services.
It is important to note that in many situations, policies permit you to have the choice of your own solicitor rather than use the panel solicitors appointed by your insurer.
INITIAL INSTRUCTIONS PRIOR TO INITIATING OR DEFENDING PROCEEDINGS
A face to face meeting would be conducted to take initial instructions during which an indication of potential merits of the case and likely compensation/award would be given based on the information discussed. Subsequent reviews of documentation would be conducted as appropriate and a further meeting may be necessary prior to drafting a claim/defence if instructed to do so.
The merits and likely compensation would be revisited throughout the matter and can be subject to change. Any work carried out prior to initiating a claim will not be included in any charges below but would just be charged at the normal hourly rate for the time taken.
RANGE OF COSTS
Our pricing for pursuing or defending claims for unfair dismissal or wrongful dismissal to receipt of the Judgment:
- Simple case involving a one-day hearing – £7,000 – £12,000 (plus VAT @ 20%) This includes advocacy representation by our in-house lawyer for one day.
- For each additional day, an additional cost range will be between £1,200 – £1,500 (plus VAT @ 20%). If there are any disbursements* and expenses these are an additional cost.
Our pricing for pursuing more complex cases of Unfair Dismissal and other cases, such as, although not limited to, discriminatory claims, breach of contract, unlawful deduction of wages to receipt of the Judgment:
- Medium complex cases including one day of representation – £12,000 – £17,000 (plus VAT @20%).
- Highly complex cases including one day of representation – £17,000 (plus VAT @20%) upwards.
*Disbursements may include fees that are payable to third parties ie for a medical report, Counsel’s fees if one is appointed.
The above does not include pre-claim conciliation, the drafting of a claim/defence or any work carried out prior to the submission of a claim/defence to the Employment Tribunal or any work that is not part of the legal proceedings pursued even if the work runs alongside the proceedings. All of which would be charged at the normal hourly rate.
The above fees are also limited to the conclusion of the main employment tribunal hearing and does not include any work carried out thereafter which, although not limited, may include review of the Judgment, dealing with costs applications and appeals.
All cases are different and each will depend on their facts so the estimates above are indicative only. (the fees may be less) It must be noted that lawyer’s fees will be payable even if you win your case because employment tribunals do not ordinarily order the losing party to pay the successful party’s costs.
OTHER FACTORS THAT COULD GIVE RISE TO A CASE BEING OF A MORE COMPLEX NATURE:
- Case Management Discussions;
- Preliminary hearings such as determining whether an application is out of time; determining the status of an applicant; determining whether a claimant has a disability;
- Applications to amend claims or provide or enquire about further information ;
- Submitting or defending a costs application;
- The number of witnesses and volume of documents;
- The number of days for which a hearing is listed;
- More than one claimant or defendant involved;
- Applications for medical reports and liaison with medical practitioners;
- Claims against a litigant in person;
- Pursuit of a data subject access request and/or responses and/or provision of and/or responses to further information;
- Remedy hearing.
Following the submission of the claim/defence to the Employment Tribunal there are some key stages when pursuing or defending a claim and such fees set out above cover all of the work in relation to the following:
- Reviewing and advising on the claim/response and discussing;
- Exploring settlement as appropriate throughout the process;
- Preparing a schedule of loss or counter schedule;
- Preparing for (and attending) a Preliminary Hearing and dealing with associated matters and rulings prior to the Final Hearing;
- Exchanging documents with the other party and agreeing a list and bundle of documents and preparing the same;
- Taking witness statements, drafting statements and agreeing their content with you and any other witnesses;
- Reviewing and advising on the other party’s witness statements;
- Drafting and agreeing a list of issues, a chronology and/or cast list;
- Preparation and attendance at Final Hearing, including where applicable instructions to Counsel;
- In some cases, preparation and attendance at a further hearing regarding the amount of any compensation to be awarded, if not dealt with at the Final Hearing ie Remedy Hearing;
Not all the stages above may be necessary and hence this will affect the overall cost. We are content to advise on any stage of the process.
A case may settle early on without the need to attend a tribunal thereby avoiding the extent of the costs that may be incurred to pursue a case to a tribunal. We assess and advise on weighing up the cost against the probability of success and likely compensation. The terms of any engagement letter takes precedence over the information outlined above.
NEED MORE INFORMATION?
Then please contact us on 02380 402066 or use our contact page for a free consultation