I was delighted to recently help my client with his Settlement Agreement. I was also very grateful to receive a 5-star review. Please read on to find out more.
My Client’s Story
My client had worked for his employer for several years. However, after his employer was acquired by another company and his employment was TUPE transferred, everything changed. TUPE is a piece of legislation which protects employee’s employment rights when a business or service transfers from one provider to another. For more information about this, please see here – https://lincslaw.co.uk/services/employees/workplace-problems/tupe-transfer-of-employment/
After his employment was TUPE transferred, suddenly it was announced his employer would be relocating hundreds of miles away. Thereafter, a redundancy process began. During this process, my client was offered a Settlement Agreement.
To explain, a Settlement Agreement is a contract which binds an employee and employer to its terms. Usually, in a Settlement Agreement the employer will offer a compensation payment to an employee in exchange for the termination of their employment, giving up their employment rights and agreeing not to bring any claims against their employer. Further information about Settlement Agreements can be found here – https://lincslaw.co.uk/services/settlement-agreement/
How Did I Assist My Client?
For a Settlement Agreement to be valid and enforceable, an employee must receive independent legal advice. Here at Lincs Law Employment Solicitors, we offer a Fixed Fee service advising in respect of Settlement Agreements. Please see here for more information – https://lincslaw.co.uk/fees/settlement-agreements/
After receiving the proposed Settlement Agreement, I was delighted my client decided to book in for a Settlement Agreement appointment with me. Before our appointment, I spent time reviewing the terms of his Settlement Agreement in detail.
During our appointment, we then spent time discussing the following together:
- The circumstances of his situation;
- Any potential Employment Tribunal claims he would be settling (if he chose to sign the Settlement Agreement);
- The value of those Employment Tribunal claims;
- The overall “benefit” of his Settlement Agreement – i.e., what benefits my client would be receiving over and above what he would otherwise be entitled to.
- The individual terms of the Settlement Agreement, in detail.
- The various options available to him moving forward.
Our meeting, as above, was part of our Fixed Fee service. However, there was no fixed time limit to our meeting. As our meeting was of unlimited duration, we took as long as necessary to discuss the above in detail. This meant my client could take his time to fully understand my advice, consider his options and decide how he wanted to proceed.
Following our meeting, I also confirmed my advice in writing to ensure he had a full record of our discussions.
As a result of my advice, I was delighted when my client decided to instruct me further to negotiate certain amendments to his Settlement Agreement. These being amendments I had highlighted to him in detail during our meeting, to best protect his position moving forward.
Given his employer’s imminent plans to relocate, there was a time pressure on our negotiations. I therefore acted swiftly in contacting his employer and negotiating the required amendments. Where necessary, I also chased the employer and kept my client updated throughout. After some negotiation, I was very pleased to secure a Settlement Agreement my client was content to sign.
My Client’s Review
I was delighted to help my client with his Settlement Agreement. I was also exceptionally grateful to receive the following 5-star review:
“…. Kate dealt with my issue very professionally and kept me updated throughout the whole process even with the extra chasing of employer….”
Lincs Law Employment Solicitors Can Help You
If your employer has presented you with a Settlement Agreement, we understand it can be a confusing and difficult time. We would be delighted to help. Please contact us for a no obligation, free consultation. Simply use the contact form, engage in a web chat, email contactus@lincslaw.com or call us on 01522 440512 and we will be happy to help.
Kate Key
Specialist Employment Solicitor
Lincs Law Employment Solicitors
Tags: being made redundant employer settlement agreement employment solicitor Kate Key lincs law employment solicitors negotiated exit redundancy situation redundant settlement agreement Settlement Agreement Advice Settlement Agreement Advice Lincoln Transfer of Undertakings tupe tupe employment tupe transfer without prejudice