Employment Tribunal Claims – Price Information

The tables below detail estimated costs for bringing or defending Employment Tribunal claims.  These all exclude VAT and any expenses we incur on your behalf and the estimates are the same whether we are acting for an employee or employer or an individual or a business.

The length of hearing in brackets refers to the estimated duration of the main (merits) hearing.  Where proceedings involve more than one of the claims listed below, the price information for the claim lowest down the table will apply.

If, in addition to any of the claims above, you pursue/defend a claim for breach of contract or unlawful deduction from wages, you must add the extra costs detailed in the table below.  This is because there is normally little, if any, overlap in the work required to conduct those claims.

The cost estimates below also apply if we represent you in a claim involving only breach of contract and unlawful deduction from wages.

Assumptions and estimates that apply to the Employment Tribunal prices

The Employment Tribunal price estimates in the two tables above are based on assumptions including that:

• The documents to be disclosed and the hearing bundle do not exceed one lever arch folder each (approximately 450 pages) – larger bundles increase the time and cost involved with conducting a case by an estimated £1,500 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%) for each 250 additional pages;
• The witness meeting takes place on a single day at our office or within a 75 mile radius of our Guildford office and:
• For cases lasting 1 day or less, there are no more than 2 witnesses and a witness meeting lasting no more than 4 hours – if there are more witnesses, or the witness meeting lasts longer, the increase in cost is estimated at £500 to £2,500 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%); or
• For cases lasting more than 1 day, there are no more than 4 witnesses and a witness meeting lasting no more than 7 hours – if there are more witnesses, or the witness meeting lasts longer, the increase in cost is estimated at £500 to £2,500 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%);
• There is no need to request additional information or reply to a request made by the opposing party or Tribunal;
• It is not necessary to participate in hearings before the main (merits) hearing, except for a single telephone case management discussion lasting up to 1 hour;
• There are no preliminary issues to determine (for example deposit orders, submissions seeking strike out, jurisdictional points) – preparation for, and attendance at, a preliminary hearing can increase the cost by approximately £2,000 to £3,500 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%);
• In cases involving disability, then disabled status is accepted and no expert evidence is required – the cost of addressing disputed evidence on disabled status is estimated at £4,000 to £7,000 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%) including the cost of obtaining an expert medical report, with possible additional fees estimated at £1,500 plus VAT ( at a current rate of 20%) per day for each day that the expert must participate in meetings or attend hearings;
• No aspect of the claim asserts personal injury;
• Mediation is not considered appropriate – separate charges apply for any process of mediation – mediation is estimated at £1,250 to £2,250 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%);
• The Employment Tribunal office hearing the case is in London, Surrey, Sussex, Kent, Hampshire, Berkshire or Hertfordshire – our Partners have handled many cases at other Tribunal offices throughout the country, it is simply that we must make additional charges to address the distance – the cost of a Tribunal hearing at a more remote location is estimated to increase fees by £1,000 to £2,000 plus VAT plus the accommodation and travel expenses estimated below;
• The main (merits) hearing lasts no longer than it is listed for – if it lasts longer or adjourns incomplete to resume at a later date, the case will require extra preparation and additional days of Tribunal attendance, typically increasing costs by approximately £2,500 to £3,500 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%) per day;
• A hearing is not adjourned within 1 week of the listed hearing date, causing duplicated costs;
• Remedy is determined entirely at the main hearing – the cost of preparing for and participating in a separate remedy hearing is estimated at £2,000 to £4,000 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%);
• No cost applications need to be made or defended – the cost of dealing with a cost application is estimated as £2,000 to £4,000 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%).

The price estimates detailed in the tables do not include:

• Work outside of the assumptions detailed in the bullet points above;
• Photocopying (25p per sheet), scanning (15p per sheet) and courier/postage costs (prevailing market rates);
• Accommodation (typically £50 to £150 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%) per night), subsistence and travel expenses (public transport and/or taxi charges if appropriate and/or 45p per mile plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%) when travelled by private car);
• Travel time where the location of meetings or hearings falls outside of the radius stated (charged at our normal hourly rates); and
• Counsel fees (typically a brief fee of £2,500 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%) covering preparation and the first day, and £1,000 plus VAT (at a current rate of 20%) for each further day) – please see below.

The Partners in our Employment Law team are experienced Employment Tribunal advocates and conduct some hearings themselves. However, sometimes we may advise using counsel. In these cases additional fees for counsel will be incurred. The estimated fees for counsel cited above envisage junior counsel of up to 10 years’ experience, but the requirements of each case will be assessed on a case by case basis to determine whether more experienced counsel is required.  We will also consult with you to determine your own wishes. More experienced counsel will command higher fees. When we instruct counsel, we will usually arrange for one of TWM’s junior fee-earners to be present at the hearing.

Employment Tribunal key stages and timescales

Key stages:

• Taking instructions and reviewing the case papers;
• Early conciliation and pre-claim negotiations;
• Preparation and filing of claim (ET1) or defence (ET3) as well as reviewing the other party’s claim or defence;
• Preparation of (if claiming), or consideration of (if defending), a schedule of loss;
• Participation in any ACAS conciliation or other settlement discussions;
• Disclosure by preparation and service of list of documents with copies
  Preparation of witness evidence by attending a witness meeting and drafting witness statements;
• Agreeing and preparing a joint bundle of documents;
• Preparation for hearing, including the preparation of any list of issues, chronology and submissions;
• Employment Tribunal Hearing and remedy;

Our price estimates are based on these key stages. If a case concludes without some of these stages being reached, for example, due to settlement, this may reduce the cost of the case.

Timescales:

• If settlement is achieved before proceedings are commenced, then the case may be concluded within approximately 8 weeks.
• If proceedings are commenced, settlement may be achieved at any time, but typical timescales for a case reaching the main hearing after submission of the claim is as follows:
• Cases listed for a hearing of one day or less – 6 to 9 months;
• Cases listed for a hearing in excess of one day – 9 to 15 months.
• If the outcome requires a separate remedy hearing, this typically adds an extra 3 months.

Contact us

For more information on our Employment Law and HR advice services, please contact Andrew Peters, Partner in Employment Law.