Unfair and Wrongful dismissal pricing range

Our pricing for bringing and defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal in the Employment Tribunals is as follows:

Simple case: £5,000-£10,000 (excluding VAT)

Medium complexity case: £10,000-£18,000 (excluding VAT)

High complexity case: over £18,000-£40,000+ (excluding VAT)

We typically charge based on an hourly rate which varies depending on the member(s) of staff dealing with your matter. The seniority of the member(s) of staff dealing with your case will depend on its complexity. We will discuss this with you when you instruct us.

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
Defending claims that are brought by litigants in person
Making or defending a costs application
Complex preliminary issues such as whether the claimant is an employee or a worker or 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 the dismissal
The number of days allocated by the Tribunal for the hearing and whether a separate hearing is required to assess any award(s) made

There will be an additional charge for attending a Tribunal Hearing of £1,000-1,500 per day (excluding VAT) and depending on the complexity of the matter. Generally, we would allow 1-5 days depending on the complexity of your case.

Disbursements

Disbursements are costs related to your matter that are payable to third parties, such as Counsel’s fees or court fees. We handle the payment of the disbursements on your behalf to ensure a smoother process.

Counsel’s fees usually start from approximately £1,000-£2,000 (excluding VAT) (depending on experience of the advocate) for attending a one-day Tribunal hearing (including preparation)

Funding your claim

You may be entitled to have some or all of your employment litigation funded by an insurance provider (e.g. for an individual via a home insurance policy). We are happy to discuss all funding options with you.

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 the merits and risks of your case 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 claim or response
Reviewing and advising on claim or response from other party
Exploring settlement and negotiating settlement throughout the process
Preparing or considering a 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 bundles 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 the final hearing and remedy hearing, including instructions to Counsel (where applicable)

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 parts of the claim yourself and only have our advice in relation to some of the stages. This can also be arranged 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 2-6 weeks. If your claim proceeds to a final hearing, your case is likely to take 4-12 months. This is 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.