How we charge employee clients for our help

Most of our work is charged based on hourly rates and agreed cost budgets.

The hourly rates we offer reflect the experience of the solicitor(s) who will be acting for you and the complexity of your case.

Our hourly rates range from £185 plus VAT to £225 plus VAT. We think  you will find our rates competitive compared to other specialist employment law solicitors.

For some work we will be able to offer you a fixed-fee to carry out a specific task or step.

A good  example is when we are asked to review and advise on a director’s new service agreement or a manager’s contract of employment.

A fixed-fee becomes payable once you give us instructions to carry out the agreed work.

We act for many employee clients who have all or most of their legal fees paid for under a legal expenses insurance policy. It can be an excellent means of funding an employment tribunal claim, but will not normally cover advice and guidance work prior to an actual dismissal or resignation.

Many individuals have this type of insurance as an add-on to home contents or car insurance. Most people do not know or remember they have it! To check you should call your insurance broker or insurance company direct and ask.

Although you should have the right to select a solicitor of your choice, some insurers are not keen to volunteer this information to you. Instead the insurer will want you to use an in-house or their nominated solicitors. This approach can be fine but you may well not get the same level of advice or service compared to Quantrills. At Quantrills we guarantee that your case will be handled by an experienced and qualified employment law solicitor, not a paralegal or an unqualified case worker. If you want to appoint Quantrills to deal with your claim please call us to discuss how best to complete the application form for cover.

Win or lose at an employment tribunal neither party is normally entitled to recover any legal costs.

Invariably, as part of a negotiated settlement, an employer (or ex-employer) will agree to pay a contribution towards the employee’s legal costs and VAT. In some cases the employer will pay all legal fees.

If you are being asked to sign a settlement agreement you should expect your employer to contribute towards your legal fees.

If you are a member of a trade union (or professional association) your membership may entitle you to receive legal help from the union’s in-house advisers. If so this may save you having to pay privately for your employment law advice and representation. It is therefore worth checking. Ordinarily a union will not pay us to act for you; there are exceptions when our fees are paid for by the union on behalf of an employee client. We would be happy to discuss this option in more detail with you.

We do not offer any form of no win no fee arrangements. These do not work successfully in employment law cases. In our experience an employee client can easily lose out under these arrangements.