HR Support Solicitors & Employment Law

Our employment law solicitors and HR support team specialise in providing advice and support to businesses and employers. Our employment and HR Support team regularly help to resolve all types of workplace disputes whether this is dealing with disciplinary issues, grievances, issues surrounding recruitment and retention or dealing with re-organisations and redundancies. We also have an excellent success rate in defending employment tribunal claims.

Staff and people that work for an organisation are often considered as an organisation’s most important asset. They can truly set your business apart from the competition and can make the difference between excellent and sub-optimal performance. That is why ensuring you have good people management and the right framework in place is vital. Here at Stephensons we believe that the key focus in supporting businesses rests in three areas, namely planning, protection and defence.

We are highly recommended in leading legal guides and have an excellent success rate in defending employment tribunal claims. To speak to a member of our team, call us on 0203 816 9302.

Employment law - facts and figures guide 2018 - Click to download our helpful PDF guide.

HR support & employment law experts

Planning
When you are starting a business as an owner it can be a daunting experience and difficult to put in place everything you need, with limited time and resources. Stephensons can assist in managing and advising on recruitment and selection and consulting with you as a business to understand your needs and provide a tailored package to give you advice and assistance through our HR and employment support packages. Find out more
Protection
Employment law changes at a fast pace making it challenging to stay up to date when managing a business on a day to day basis. Here at Stephensons we can provide ongoing support and protection for businesses through our Workplace Plus and HR Assist packages to ensure you are on top of current changes and help you avoid employment tribunal claims. Find out more
Defence
All business owners want to avoid any claims raised at an employment tribunal, however even best practice employers will inevitably experience issues with their staff from time to time. Here at Stephensons we can assist you in defending employment tribunal claims. Find out more
Workplace Plus
Workplace Plus' employment law services remove the time and everyday headaches of being an employer. From structuring employment policies to advice on recruitment, drafting contracts to documenting company procedures, the service gives you all the tools you need to become a best practice employer. Find out more
HR Assist - small business support
HR Assist is an employment law and HR support service tailored by Stephensons to ensure that businesses are kept compliant with employment law, just the kind of help any small business needs to avoid costly disputes arising. Find out more

How we can assist you

Even when effective planning is undertaken, business owners will still face unplanned issues and circumstances which they will need to protect their business to ensure that they are legally compliant and acting as a best practice employer. There are a multitude of issues and queries facing business owners whether this relates to disciplinary issues, grievances, managing performance or dealing with redundancies.

In addition to this, employment law changes constantly and it can be hard to keep up to date. We can help you protect your business through our HR Assist and Workplace Plus products giving you definitive help and guidance.

Defence

In some instances, you may unfortunately face the need for expert defence. If things do go wrong we'll prepare your case and represent you in court or tribunal - a source of comfort in view of the growing 'compensation culture'.

There may also be cases when staff leave and you need guidance regarding settlement agreements, when faced with this alone it can prove difficult to know what the best course of action is. You need legal advice to ensure you make the right decision.

An increasing number of employers are looking at ways of making cost savings. Unfortunately for many employers they will have no option other than to consider making employees redundant. If you are considering making staff redundant speak to our employment law experts for advice on the correct procedures.

Where redundancies are concerned it is important for employers to seek advice from specialist employment solicitors to ensure they are following best practice. Although many employers will have perfectly legitimate reasons for making redundancies, it is still important that employers follow a reasonable procedure which involves consultation, a fair basis for selection and consideration of alternatives before arriving at the decision to make employees redundant.

Stephensons’ employment solicitors will be at hand to resolve any concerns you have and guide you through this process. We will help minimise the risk of the potential for any claims and deal with all the formalities for you. Call us on 0203 816 9302 or complete our online enquiry form and a member of the team will contact you directly.

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Employment law and HR support packages

Our specialist solicitors have developed a number of employment law packages to help businesses. Further more information on what is included please use the links below.

If you wish to discuss any of our HR support packages in further detail, please do not hesitate to contact us 0203 816 9302.

Areas of specialism

Our solicitors advise clients nationally from our offices in London, Manchester, Bolton, Wigan, St Helens and Leigh on a range of issues, including but not limited to:

Drafting terms and conditions, policies and procedures
Provide advice on recruitment
Advice on performance/capability issues
Employee management
Dealing with grievances
Dealing with disciplinary/dismissal issues
Re-structures/redundancy
Defending all types of tribunal claims including unfair dismissal, all types of discrimination claims, wrongful dismissal and breach of contract

How much does representation at an employment tribunal cost?

Defending a claim for unfair dismissal - Between £5,000.00 - £8,000 plus VAT and third party costs.

Defending a claim for discrimination or a combination of unfair dismissal and discrimination - Between £6,000- £10,000 plus VAT and third party costs.

Prices quoted are for representation throughout the full stage of proceedings up to a final hearing. Work would include the draft of initial pleadings, attendance at a preliminary hearing to discuss case management, dealing with the case management orders including; preparation of a schedule of loss; dealing with disclosure of documents/preparation of a bundle and drafting of witness statements. We would also instruct and liaise with a barrister for any final preparations before attending the final hearing.

Third party costs including a barrister attending the hearing can range from £400 - £2,500 depending on the length of the hearing and experience of the barrister. Clients will be informed as early as possible about the costs of the barrister.

On average an employment tribunal can take up to 6 months though this depends on each case.

What qualifications do the team hold?

All employment law work is supervised by a qualified solicitor. Specific experience can be seen in the individual profiles.

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Workplace Plus - HR & Employment Law Support
Workplace Plus removes the time and everyday headaches of being an employer. From structuring employment policies to advice on recruitment. This service gives you all the tools you need to become a best practice employer.

Here Mary Jarrett shares her experience of using the Workplace Plus package and working with the HR and employment law team at Stephensons.
[youtube url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IcSEYrJ6n0E"]

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The whole experience of working with Martha, my solicitor from Stephensons, was excellent. She gave great advice and was open and honest with her responses. She responded quickly and worked hard at trying to get a resolution for me.
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As an award-winning top 150 law firm, with over 450 staff based in offices across the country, you're never far from the advice you need.

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