Unfair and wrongful dismissal claims

Under Rule 1 of the SRA Transparency Rules, law firms that provide services relating to bringing (for individuals) or defending (for businesses) Employment Tribunal claims for unfair or wrongful dismissal are required to publish information on the prices and services they offer. Other Employment Tribunal claims, as well as High Court claims (such as partnership disputes), are excluded from these requirements and the information provided below.

An unfair dismissal claim is a statutory claim which relates to the fairness of the dismissal.  A wrongful dismissal claim is a contractual claim for compensation for failure to pay some or all of notice pay.  Only wrongful dismissal claims worth up to £25,000 can be brought in the Employment Tribunal.  Any wrongful dismissal claims worth more than that must be brought in the High Court, in which case any such claims are outside the scope of the SRA Transparency Rules.

Each case turns on its own facts.  We will provide a bespoke fee estimate for each client at the start of any engagement. The information set out below is for indicative purposes only.

Nearly all unfair or wrongful dismissal claims that we handle will include other claims, such as for unlawful discrimination or whistleblowing. These other claims will significantly affect the costs estimate we outline below. 

You may have other funding options available, such as cover under an insurance policy. We will check this with you at your first appointment, though in most cases we will not accept engagements that are funded by third parties.

Pricing

Our hourly rate for partners is £535 plus VAT. The hourly rate for other team members varies with experience and will be notified to clients.

Broadly, our pricing for bringing and defending claims solely for pure unfair or wrongful dismissal in the Employment Tribunal (excluding other Employment Tribunal claims, such as whistleblowing or discrimination claims) is as follows:

  • Simple case: £10,000 - £15,000 (excluding VAT and disbursements)

  • Medium complexity case: £15,000 - £25,000 (excluding VAT and disbursements)

  • High complexity case: £25,000 - £50,000 (excluding VAT and disbursements)

Factors that could make a case more complex include:

  • whether 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;

  • whether it is an automatic unfair dismissal claim, e.g. you are dismissed because of a business transfer or service provision change (see further below);

  • allegations of discrimination which are linked to the dismissal; 

  • complex preliminary issues such as whether the claimant is disabled (if this is not agreed by the parties); and

  • the number of witnesses and documents.

There will be an additional charge for attending a Tribunal hearing of between £2,500 and £4,000 per day (excluding VAT and disbursements). Generally, we would allow one to five days depending on the complexity of your case.

Some dismissals may be characterised as being “automatically” unfair (which can mean that compensation is uncapped or that the individual need not have qualifying service, or both). These automatic unfair dismissal claims cover a broad range of circumstances where the individual has a special status, for example s/he is a “whistleblower” or has taken part in protected industrial action. The pricing outlined above would likely be applicable to most automatic dismissal claims, except for those relating to whistleblowing.

Broadly, a whistleblower is someone who successfully claims special protection because s/he has made a disclosure about wrongdoing that meets certain statutory conditions. As claims for whistleblowing dismissals are complex and fact-sensitive (particularly in regulated environments), we provide bespoke fee estimates on a case-by-case basis. You should take the top end of the range provided above for high complexity cases as the minimum for bringing or defending such claims.

Disbursements

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

Fees would likely average between £1,500 to £2,000 per day (excluding VAT) for a barrister to attend a Tribunal hearing (depending on the experience of the advocate) in relation to bringing or defending an unfair or wrongful dismissal claim. It is usual for a barrister to charge a separate fee known as a “brief fee” to prepare for the hearing which could be in the range of £5,000 to £10,000 (excluding VAT) depending on his/her seniority and the complexity of the case. The brief fee is usually paid in instalments a few weeks before the hearing starts.

The barrister fees for whistleblowing dismissals will likely be significantly higher given the complexity of the issues involved. We provide bespoke fee estimates on a case-by-case basis. You should take the top end of the range provided above as the minimum for barrister fees for litigation of this kind.

Key Stages

The fees set out above cover 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 a claim or response;

  • reviewing and advising on a 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 a bundle of documents to be used at any hearing;

  • reviewing and advising on the other party's witness statements;

  • agreeing a list of issues, a chronology and/or cast list; and

  • preparation and attendance at final hearing, including instructions to a barrister.

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 according to your individual needs.

Duration

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 or before, your case is likely to take three to 12 weeks from the start of negotiations. If your claim proceeds to a final hearing, your case may take up to 12 – 18 months, given the busyness of the Employment Tribunal and the length of time it may take to list hearings. 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.

Qualifications and experience

The firm’s partners are Louise Coyne and Sean Coyne. They are both fully qualified to practise as solicitors in England and Wales and are officers of the Senior Courts of England and Wales.

Louise Coyne trained as a solicitor at Beachcroft (as it then was, now DAC Beachcroft) and qualified on 15 September 2008.  Louise practised for nine years at PwC. Louise has been on client secondment to UniLever, Tate & Lyle, Shire Pharmaceuticals, and the BBC. More information about Louise’s experience can be found here.

Sean Coyne trained as a solicitor at Allen & Overy and qualified on 16 March 2009. Sean has practised at PwC, Simmons & Simmons and Ashurst. Sean has been on client secondment to BlackRock, Barclays and Societe Generale. More information about Sean’s experience can be found here.

Sean and Louise supervise and carry out the day-to-day management of the firm’s caseload. Appropriately qualified and experienced employed and consultant lawyers and paralegals, as well as other administrative support, may be engaged to assist with matters. Details of other staff engaged on any matter will be given to clients as required.