Our pricing for bringing and defending claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal

Simple case Average £5,000 (excluding VAT)

Medium complexity case Average £12,500 (excluding VAT)

High complexity case Average £25,000 (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
• Defending claims that are brought by litigants in person
• Making or defending a costs application
• Complex 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 the dismissal

We may instruct a barrister to help with more complex drafting and conduct of the hearing. These costs would be in addition to our fees and would vary depending on the complexity of the case, the issues involved and the length of the hearing. We will provide an accurate estimate of costs in each case and will discuss and agree this with you before hand. There will be an additional charge for our attending the tribunal to assist the barrister and to help with the smooth running of the hearing which will depend on which member of staff attends and would be based on the hourly rate:

Status 

• Partners, Solicitors, Legal Executives, Licensed Conveyancers, Consultants and Specialists with over 8 years post qualification experience: £275ph + vat
• Solicitors, Legal Executives and Licensed Conveyancers with over 4 years post qualification experience: £250ph + vat
• Solicitors, legal executives and Licensed Conveyancers with up to 4 years post qualification experience: £225ph + vat
• Trainee solicitors and Trainee legal executives and Paralegals: £185ph + vat
• Legal Assistants: £145ph + vat

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 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 bundle of documents
• 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. For example, if you wish us to help complete the claim form outlining your case and the nature of the dispute or if you are the employer, the response when a claim has been made against you this can be done separately. You would then have the option of going on to negotiate a settlement prior to the litigation progress which you could do on your own or we could assist with. We can tailor our services to meet any of your requirements.

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 3-6 weeks. If your claim proceeds to a Final Hearing, your case is likely to take 6-12 months depending partly on when the Tribunal can hear the case. 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.