Unfair Dismissal - Solicitor Fees

ianianian_2

Morning all,

Quick one....

I'm to be made redundant. There are a number of reasons that I feel that this is unfair and colleagues have backed up my opinion.

If i went down the tribuneral route, how much would it cost in solicitor fees. as I don't have the appropriate insurance i've been quotes 33% on a no win no fee basis. Is this reasonable?

I think it sounds a bit steep as i've compiled all of the relevant data, policy, issues etc and am prepared to do a lot of the work.

Any thoughts area much appreciated!

Thanks

SarEl

ianianian wrote: »

i've been quotes 33% on a no win no fee basis. Is this reasonable?

I think it sounds a bit steep as i've compiled all of the relevant data, policy, issues etc and am prepared to do a lot of the work.

It's parr for the course. It doesn't matter what you think (sorry, not being nasty, just telling the truth) because this is a sellers market - you want legal representation without having to pay for it (no risk to you), so you pay what they want or go without. You don't have to have legal representation for a tribunal - you can do it yourself. But if you want it, then the price is the price.

viktory

My husband's colleague was quoted £3k for an unfair dismissal case at tribunal - but there were a number of 'extras' that the solicitor stated they could bill for so I doubt very much that the final bill would have been anywhere near £3k.

My husband and I started our tribunal proceedings ourselves. We used a really, really good book (can't remember the name of it now, I am at work) and had some very valuable help from posters on here (you know who you are!). We did settle quite early into the process though - and it was already quite stressful!

SarEl

viktory wrote: »

My husband's colleague was quoted £3k for an unfair dismissal case at tribunal - but there were a number of 'extras' that the solicitor stated they could bill for so I doubt very much that the final bill would have been anywhere near £3k.

Definitely on the low side - verging on the absurd unless it was a slam dunk easy case and over in the week (and I do mean the whole thing over in a week - from first interview with solictor to final hearing!). Straightforward cases can be anything from £7k - £15 (and that really is low) for a single solicitor (which is actually one solicitor plus associates - legal executives, assistants and so on - anyone who has done this knows there is more work than you think there is!). Many cases are £10 - £20k or more. Complex cases can be £20 - £30k. And that is before a barrister is involved in most cases - although we obviously tend to only work on more complex cases. Now you can see why trades union membership has it's attractions!

The only consolation here is that employers costs average higher!

Nassy

Overall I would suggest you represent yourself. Perhaps a barrister would tip the case in your favour but if you adequately prepare (ie understand main aspects of redundancy law, look at winning redundancy cases, prepare documentation, witness statements and cross examine well) then you can do it (assuming your case has a chance to start with).

Of course solicitors/barristers are far superior in legal skills to untrained representatives but you have the benefit of being able to concentrate all your focus on 1 case and also will have a far better insight in the situation that *you" endured.

If you represent yourself you could still get the odd bit of help from a trained professional anyway - but why pay thousands. Unless you are sure to win many tens of thousands (in which case may be it is worth paying money) I really wouldn't have thought spending much.

Just my opinion :cool:

SarEl

I broadly agree - but it does depend on the case. The other point of view is that 57% of something is better than 100% of nothing! So if all the risk is with the solicitor, then you have nothing to loose, since you don't have anything anyway! I am not madly an advocate of No win No fee - and I do no such cases myself - so I have an impartial view from a legal point of view. But there is no doubt that they have advantages over nothing - especially if they may win and you aren't confident that you would on your own (or couldn't handle the stress on your own)

ianianian_2

Thanks for the reply guys.

I didn't realise the costs were that high - maybe it's not such a bad deal.

In regards taking on the case myself - whilst i obviously know far more about my company/ role/ situation than any solicitor, just having their name on the letterhead must provide a massive boost. Plus, in a big company like mine i'd probably get eaten alive by their legal team!

dori2o

my dad went for a free 30 minute consultation with an employment solicitor who told him his hourly rate was £180.

Seems quite steep considering the advice he gave my dad was rotten and had he listened to him would have lost out on £3600.

Nassy

SarEl gives excellent advice. My view point is a little bit personal as I have chosen to represent my own case - also unfair dismissal. However that is only because I don't feel that stressed by the idea and relish the challenge (but that is probably only because I'd always considered going into law and amd still would if it wasn't so competitive).

Nevertheless not exactly expecting anything to be easy. I am reading a great book called "tactics and precedents" which has given me an idea of what is involved and its left me with no doubt on the level of effort that I am going to have to make.

Good luck with your case!

Equaliser123

No way of giving any estimate without knowing the complexity of the case, how vigorously it is likely to be defended and what the issues are likely to involve.

Regarding representing yourself: as Lord Denning once said, "a lawyer in his own cause has a fool for a client". In other words, sometimes you need a bit of objectivity in a case.

Nassy

I will just add that I think those who have access to free representation or have access to a good "no win no fee" percentage deal have a very good reason not to represent themselves.

But not everyone has these options and paying loads of $$$ is nowhere near as attractive then.

However I definitely don't feel it lacks objectivity to represent yourself, if the only other option is potentially frittering away lots of money. I definitely agree though that if you represent yourself you do need to work harder to understand and accept the relative strengths and weaknesses of your case and the respondent's case.