To sue or not to sue

Costs

Costs vary a great deal: they depend on the nature of your case and the firm you use. Therefore it’s extremely difficult to speculate on the amount of money involved. It could cost anything between £2,000 and £10,000 to bring a straightforward unfair dismissal claim. However, you should expect to be responsible for your own legal costs whatever the outcome. This is obviously a key thing to bear in mind when deciding whether or not to instruct a solicitor. If you do, make sure you understand the basis on which you’ll be charged, and if possible, try to arrange a fixed fee. An increasing number of law firms are prepared to represent applicants on a no win, no fee basis.

Stand up for your rights

Any applicant who has taken their case to a full employment tribunal hearing will tell you that it involved a lot of preparation, hard work, expense and raw emotion. You should therefore consider any settlement offer extremely carefully. However, having said this, you should also be ready to grit your teeth and battle on if this is what it takes to protect your employment rights.