Unfair Dismissal Settlement Agreement Solicitors

The sums of money which can be claimed in an unfair dismissal settlement agreement claim relates primarily to their loss of salary. This means that those employees that secure a job quickly will recover less than those who are out of work long-term following their dismissal.

An unfair dismissal settlement agreement claim has to be filed by the employee within three months of the date of the termination of employment. An employee may contact ACAS which is the advisory conciliation service to arrive at an agreement for severance with their former employer.

An employee is required to draft a form ET1 and file this together with his or her particulars of claim at the Employment Tribunal closest to his or her usual place of employment.

One way of settling an unfair dismissal settlement claim is when an employee and an employer enter into an agreement known as a settlement agreement.

Unfair dismissal settlement claims are by far the most common claims that are seen in the Employment Tribunals of England and Wales.

To win an unfair dismissal claim under a settlement agreement, an employee must demonstrate that their employment termination was unreasonable. This requires proving that the employer’s decision to dismiss did not fall within a reasonable range of responses. The employer’s process which was followed prior to the dismissal may have been flawed. Alternatively, it could be where the dismissal itself was substantively unfair.

In the event the process was unfair, the employee is at liberty to argue that a proper process was followed. Then a fair dismissal would have taken place.

In that event, an employer may be able to argue a reduction in damages is appropriate and this is known as a Polkey defence.