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Employment Tribunal Services and Fee

At Carbon Law Partners, we are committed to providing transparency and certainty around costs. Our Employment Tribunal Services and Fees guide explains the support we provide and the fees that may apply when bringing or defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal.

WHAT CAN I EXPECT FROM THE CLAIM PROCESS?

The precise stages involved in the employment claim process vary according to the circumstances. However, typically you can expect that we will:

  • Take your initial instructions, review the papers and advise your position and any likely award (this is likely to be revisited throughout the matter and subject to change and how the claim develops towards a hearing);
  • Where mandatory, enter into pre-claim conciliation to explore whether a settlement can be reached and manage this process for you;
  • Prepare your claim or response;
  • Review and advise on a claim or response from the other party;
  • Explore settlement and negotiate settlement throughout the claim process;
  • Prepare and/or consider a schedule of loss and any counter-schedule of loss;
  • Prepare for and attend a Preliminary Hearing;
  • Exchange documents with the other party and agree a bundle of documents (this will usually include preparation of a final bundle if we are acting in connection with a response);
  • Assist with the preparation of witness statements;
  • Review and advise on the other party’s witness statements;
  • Agree a list of issues (if not already agreed at the Preliminary Hearing), a chronology, cast list if required and any other documentation ordered to have been completed prior to hearing;
  • Prepare for and attend the Final Hearing, including instructions to a barrister to represent you.

The stages set out above are an indication and some may not be required. You may wish to handle the claim yourself and only have our advice in relation to some of the stages and therefore the amount of support you require will determine the fees payable.

HOW LONG WILL MY EMPLOYMENT CLAIM TAKE?

The time that it takes from taking your initial instructions to the final resolution of your claim depends largely on the stage at which your case is resolved and the stage at which you instruct us.

If settlement is reached during Acas Early Conciliation, it could take up to 12 weeks. If it proceeds to a final hearing, it could take 2 to 3 years, this depends on a number of factors which may be out of our control (for example, how busy the employment tribunal diary is and depending on the length of the final hearing) and therefore the timescale could be much longer; we will of course be able to give you a more accurate timescale once we have more information and as the matter progresses.

The work will be carried out by one of our team of employment lawyers who are all highly experienced in dealing with employment tribunal claims and spend 100% of their time dealing with employment issues.

You should always bear in mind that you may have other funding options available to you, such as cover under an insurance policy and we can help you to identify if this is the case.

WHAT ARE OUR FEES FOR EMPLOYMENT CLAIMS?

Our fees for bringing and defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal are calculated on an hourly or fixed fee basis. Where an hourly rate is applied, this will range from £375 to £400 per hour plus VAT per hour (+20% VAT). The examples given below are our charges for our assistance before a tribunal hearing (separate rates for attendance at hearings apply and are set out further below):

  • A simple case with few witnesses: £15,000-£25,000 plus VAT (+20% VAT)
  • A medium complexity case with few witnesses/simple case with multiple witnesses: £20,000-£40,000 (+20% VAT)
  • A highly complex case/medium complex case with multiple witnesses: £30,000-£50,000 (+20% VAT)

Factors that could make a case more complex include but are not limited to:

  • 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 (claimants who don’t use specialist advisers);
  • Making or defending a costs application;
  • 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 a dismissal;
  • The seniority of the individuals involved;
  • Not working with us in reasonable way, delays in responding to our enquiries or failing to respond;
  • If information is not fully disclosed at the outset of a case which later comes to light;
  • The amount of time spent on correspondence, telephone calls and meetings in connection with the case; and
  • Having to postpone a case or where a case starts in the Tribunal but does not complete with a repeat attendance which we is when a case is “part heard”.

There will be an additional charge for attending a Tribunal Hearing of £1,500 per day (excluding disbursements and 20% VAT). Typically, we would expect a Tribunal Hearing to last 1-5 days depending on the complexity of your case, but some cases can stretch to a much longer period of time.

WHAT ARE DISBURSEMENTS?

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process. Disbursements are paid by you in advance of the services being incurred.

Barrister’s fees for a one day hearing are estimated between £4,000 to £8,000 (+20% VAT), depending on the experience, this is including preparatory work. Further days are estimated at between £1,000 and £3,000 (+20% VAT).