We helped our client raise a grievance whilst also maintaining relationships and negotiated a new working arrangement with his employer and a generous compensation package. We represented our client’s interests so that we did not burn his bridges with his Employer, which was the outcome that he wanted, but this can often be difficult to achieve once lawyers become involved.
Our client was accused of breaching confidentiality and post termination restrictions when she left to join a competitor and was threatened with an injunction and breach of contract claim (plus costs) running to tens of thousands of pounds. We successfully disputed these allegations and the enforceability of the post termination restrictions the employer conceded and did not pursue action against her. We were able to get to grips with the client’s situation and respond quickly to the threat of injunction and a damages claim. Our client was being put under a lot of pressure from a city law firm but we were able to intervene and represent her interests in a cost-effective way.
We acted for a black lawyer who worked in a large firm. His claim involved race discrimination – including racist remarks made by a partner. He was also side-lined and unable to hit his target, due to a concerted effort to divert work away from him. We assisted our client with a grievance and negotiated a significant compensation on his behalf.
We acted for an individual who suffered serious and sustained race discrimination whilst working for a well-known restaurant chain. This client issued her claim herself but came to us seeking representation because she was struggling to conduct the litigation herself and had been put under pressure by the Respondent. We helped secure a favourable financial settlement which was her preferred outcome rather than waiting for over 12 months for her Tribunal hearing.
We acted for a female executive threatened with dismissal for failing to meet unfair targets being set following her return from maternity leave and being unfairly threatened with performance management. We defended the performance allegations and negotiated a mutual exit, preserving our client’s reputational and career.
We recently worked with a client who was a vulnerable individual from overseas, with very little English, facing summary dismissal for gross misconduct who faced the prospect of losing his family home, as this was provided as part of his job. We successfully fought the allegations and secured a financial settlement.
We acted for an individual who was dismissed for making a flexible working application. She pursued claims for unlawful refusal of a flexible working request, as well as unfair dismissal and indirect sex discrimination. The client issued the claim herself and came to us seeking representation as she was struggling to conduct the litigation, particularly as she had been put under pressure by the Respondent. Our representation placed her in a stronger position and ensured that she felt better equipped to fight the injustice that she had suffered.
Our client instructed us following threats by her employer that it would initiate a capability procedure and alleged performance issues against her. Her employer gave her the option to leave the organisation with notice pay and avoid being performance managed or stay and risk being dismissed for capability reasons. We advised our client to raise a grievance, complaining of the bullying and harassment she had been subjected to. We contested allegations of under-performance on her behalf. Within three weeks we secured a mutual termination for her and a significant settlement sum.
We supported them through the internal process and advised of the options available, including challenging this process internally. We assisted her throughout the negotiations and secured an exit package which enable her to leave with a resolution with which she was delighted, despite the difficulties associated with losing her job during her maternity leave.
The claim was brought by an employee who felt aggrieved after being dismissed by a start-up company. We were able to persuasively present the case which demonstrated that the dismissal was neither discriminatory, nor unfair. Had the claims succeeded, the business could have gone into administration and so the result was extremely well received by the business.
We advised a sub-contractor on their TUPE obligations when their contract was taken back in-house on short notice by the main contractor, particularly in relation to dealing with employees where there was a dispute as to whether they were assigned to the service being taken back in-house. We helped our client achieve a commercial resolution.
Following the long term absence of an employee, the business sought to remove the employee on the grounds the he was no longer capable of doing his role. The client sought advice after it had received a lengthy grievance from the employee alleging disability discrimination and potential unfair dismissal. We assisted our client in investigating the grievance, ensuring the business would be able to justify its position. Obtained medical evidence, which was helpful to our client and negotiated a mutual termination which was cost effective and favourable to our client.
We helped a small tech business successfully navigate a number of complex and inter-related grievances and disciplinaries, involving allegations (and counter-allegations) of islamophia between a number of employees and against the business.
This involved allegations from one of the co-founders of unfair dismissal, unpaid shares and a contested TUPE transfer. We successfully defended the director’s legal claims and resolved the issues.
The Claimant, who had less than 2 years’ service, had claimed that he was harassed because of his sexual orientation and resigned allegedly in response. We were able to refute the allegations made throughout with clear evidence in support of the performance related concerns which had been raised with him.
This mainly concerned moving staff from full-time to part-time/flexible contracts. We put together a plan and all the necessary documentation, enabling them to make the changes they needed whilst maintaining good employee relations and minimising legal claims.
We helped broker a pragmatic and commercial settlement of a UK-based business’ dispute with an overseas contractor who asserted employee status and associated termination rights and unpaid holiday pay and pension contributions when they ended his contract for services.
We provided advice in relation to its staff and designing/preparing new policies, notices and internal procedures. This involved advising on some particularly thorny issues relating to employee monitoring, vehicle-tracking, drugs and alcohol checks and criminal convictions checks.