Our Employment Team offers an expert service. We are happy to meet with clients at our offices or at theirs if needed. We offer competitive rates for private paying clients and are willing to consider funding on Damages Based Agreements if appropriate.
We have strong ties with the local Citizens Advice Bureaus and provide a great deal of Pro Bono advice to help our local community. We cover all aspects of Employment Law to include Unfair Dismissal, Redundancies, TUPE, Discrimination, Settlement Agreements, Unlawful Deduction of Wages, Wrongful Dismissal and Breach of Contract Claims.
Our Personal Injury Experience means that we have special knowledge in dealing with cases involving Stress at Work.
If you need Employment Law Advice, please contact us on 020 3982 7222 or email on employment@lawsol.co.uk
Our Team
Renu Sanghera Partner
Renu qualified as a Solicitor in 2005 and founded the Employment Law Department at Lawrence & Co. She runs the Department from our Southall Office and has a good network of both employer and employee clients. She has strong ties with the Hounslow Citizens Advice Bureau and is a strong believer in obtaining justice for her clients. She is also able to offer a professional approach to businesses that require advice on all Employment Law aspects.
Laura Saha Paralegal
Laura assists the Employment Team with their caseload and is a valued member of the Employment Team. She is known for her patience and professionalism amongst her clients and prides herself in client care. She has a particular eye for detail and has assisted in preparing many cases for trial and preliminary hearings.
Fee Guidance
Free Consultation | We offer an initial free consultation service to give you the chance to explain your claim so that we can guide you on the best way forward. |
Damage Based Agreements (No Win, No Fee) | If we feel that your case has a reasonable prospect of success, we may agree to fund your case on a No Win No Fee Agreement where we take between up to 35% of the compensation you receive upon successful conclusion of the case as our legal fees. If you do not win, there is nothing for you to pay. This is subject to terms and conditions such as you failing to provide us with your instructions when asked or changing your mind about bringing the claim when work has already been carried out on your case. In such instances, we reserve the right to charge our hourly rate for work done on the file.
The percentage agreed towards our fees (up to 35%) does not include payment for disbursements but does include VAT at 20%. Generally, we are able to tell you whether we can take your case on under a No Win No Fee during our first meeting. With these types of Agreements, we have an ongoing duty to assess the merits of your case. If, during the course of the case, your prospects of success drop below 50%, we have a right to withdraw from the No Win No Fee Agreement (with no costs to you except any incurred disbursements). |
Private Fee Paying and Hourly Rates | If the work is carried out on a private fee paying basis, usually our hourly rate will apply. These can range from £175 plus vat to £300 plus vat depending on the level of the staff member dealing with your case. |
Legal Expenses Insurance | You may have legal expenses insurance (LEI) under your household (or other) insurance policy which will pay our bills directly, so you don’t have to. If you do have the benefit of legal expenses insurance, we can assist with getting cover in place. Most policies cannot be used at an early stage (such as negotiating an out of court settlement) but can be used to present Employment Tribunal Claims and cover ongoing representation costs. |
Fixed Fee | Some work is suitable for our ‘fixed fee’ scheme which is set out below:
Stage 1 – Review of Papers and Negotiation with Employer/Employee and ACAS – £500-750 plus vat depending on the amount of papers. We aim to review your papers within a week from when you send them depending on the urgency of any deadlines that you may have to get back to your employer by. We appreciate that deadlines are sometimes tight. Stage 2 – If negotiations fail and there is a need to issue court proceedings, within 3 months of your cause of action, ACAS Conciliation should be initiated. ACAS Conciliation to include drafting a Schedule of Loss, ACAS Application, Negotiation and COT3 drafting – £1000 plus VAT. ACAS Conciliation can usually last around 4 to 6 weeks. If ACAS Conciliation fails, court proceedings will need to be issued within one month. You should note that Employment Tribunals can often list your final hearing a year after issuing your court proceedings and therefore this is a long process. Stage 3 – Issuing the ET1, negotiations and paperwork up to and including a 1 day hearing including witness statements but not disbursements – £2000 plus VAT. If a Preliminary Hearing is needed, extra fees may apply of up to £500 plus vat (excluding disbursements). Stage 4 – Same as Stage 3 but for a 2 day hearing and up to 4 witnesses – £4000 plus vat (excluding disbursements). Stage 5 – Same as Stage 3 but for a 3 to 4 day hearing with 6 witnesses – £5000 plus vat (excluding disbursements) |
*Disbursements mean anything that needs paying for on top of our legal fees such as Barrister Fees, Expert Fees and Medical Reports etc. Disbursements for Barristers can range from £1000-1500 plus vat per day or £250 plus vat per hour, Experts and medical reports can range from £600-£5000 plus vat. If the Expert is required to attend Court, further fees could apply. | |
Settlement Agreements | This is free because your employer pays for this service. When you get a copy of the settlement agreement document, you will see a clause which specifies how much your employer is willing to pay for you to obtain advice on the document (usually £300-£600 plus vat). |