Employment Law Solicitors Manchester, Lancashire, Leeds

Employment & HR

Employment and HR issues can have a serious financial impact on your business, whether through disputes, tribunals or compliance failures.

Our Legal 500-recognised solicitors provide strategic, commercially focused advice to help you manage risk, resolve issues efficiently and protect your bottom line.

More about Employment & HR

Employment law is an area that is constantly evolving. Falling behind can expose your business to costly claims, reputational damage and operational risk. That’s why we work as an extension of your team, offering proactive, strategic advice tailored to your business.

Our team comprises of:

Commercial specialists advising businesses across a range of industries, including manufacturing, construction and food production.
Public sector specialists advising national bodies, local authorities, housing associations and educational establishments.

We tailor our offering to each client, offering bespoke fixed-cost insurance-backed packages: HR Complete for SMEs and Forbes In-House for larger employers.

We pride ourselves on our USP of providing project-based work, such as conducting complex disciplinary and grievance investigations, as well as holding redundancy consultation meetings and supporting the Care sector.

Added value is a key part of our offering: delivering in-house training sessions, hosting regular events and publishing articles relating to changes in the law.

Our team comprises of:

Commercial specialists advising businesses across a range of industries, including manufacturing, construction and food production.
Public sector specialists advising national bodies, local authorities, housing associations and educational establishments.

We tailor our offering to each client, offering bespoke fixed-cost insurance-backed packages: HR Complete for SMEs and Forbes In-House for larger employers.

Added value is a key part of our offering: delivering in-house training sessions, hosting regular events and publishing articles relating to changes in the law.

They offer an overall evaluation of the situation and give best advice towards reaching the desired outcome. They don't use legal jargon and relay advice in practical layman's terms.

Legal 500

The employment team at Forbes is more like an extension of your HR team. What I appreciate most is their proactive approach – they take the time to thoroughly understand our business, offering tailored solutions that are both practical and forward-thinking.

Legal 500

Jennifer Smith has the ability to always seem available and ready to help whenever you need her. Although she is very busy, nothing is ever too much trouble.

Legal 500

Laura McHugh and Ruth Rule-Mullen are both outstanding, providing advice and guidance in a timely manner to mitigate risk and protect the reputation of our business. Advice is straightforward, understandable, using recent and relevant knowledge and experience of the sector.

Legal 500

Everyone is extremely personable and down-to-earth. They offer pragmatic commercial solutions to legal dilemmas and really take the time to understand your business and the issues you face. It has been a pleasure working with them.

Legal 500

Jennifer Smith demonstrated a deep understanding of EDI and sexual harassment and tailored the content provided to fit the needs of our business, to ensure that it was as impactful as possible. She skilfully navigated complex topics, offering real-world examples that resonated with all involved.

Legal 500

Gabriela assisted us with a challenging employee raising numerous complex issues that were required to be considered as part of a HR appeal process. Gabriela's thoughtful and considered approach was greatly appreciated and the communication we received was consistently clear and timely despite repeated disruption and challenges from the employee. Her extensive knowledge and practical approach were clear to see and helped us to navigate a difficult situation. We would certainly recommend Gabriela's services to any organisation seeking reliable HR advice or consultancy services.

Anonymous

Helpful Start to Finish
From start to finish, Fern was excellent in all facets of the job. She was in contact constantly, advised me on my situation and how to improve my case, and was just an all round pleasure to work with.

Anonymous

Need first class employment legal services contact the team at Forbes
Excellent from initial engagement, through to satisfactory completion of the matter. I would highly recommend Fern Gordon - Employment Solicitor and the team at Forbes.

Anonymous

Perfect legal support for the busy SME owner
I have used the services of Forbes Solicitors for a number of years now, for HR/employment law advice and for advice on and creation of commercial contracts. I continue to use Forbes because of their personal approach, speed of response and balanced advice.

Anonymous

Employment & HR FAQs

Do I need to issue my employees with contracts of employment?

Whilst there is no statutory requirement to have written contracts in place, section 1 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 provides that an employer must provide certain written particulars of employment to employees whose employment lasts for at least one month. The written particulars must be provided within two months of the employee commencing employment.

If an employer fails to provide a statement of written particulars, provides an incomplete statement, or fails to notify the employee of a change in their terms of employment, the employee can apply to the Employment Tribunal for a determination as to what the terms of their employment were, or ought to have been.

If, during the course of Employment Tribunal proceedings, it becomes apparent that an employer has failed to provide an employee with written particulars of employment, the Tribunal can award two or four weeks' gross pay to the employee.

What is an employment settlement agreement?

A settlement agreement is a legally binding agreement between an employer and an employee, where the employee accepts a sum of money in full and final settlement of any Tribunal or Court claims against the employer arising out of their employment or its termination. It is one of the only ways in which an employer can ensure that an employee will not bring a claim to the Employment Tribunal after their employment comes to an end.

There are various requirements that must be met in order for a settlement agreement to be legally binding. The agreement must be in writing, it must identify the employee's legal adviser (who must have a policy of professional indemnity insurance in place) and it must list the specific claims that the employee may have against the employer.

The employee must obtain independent legal advice in relation to the terms and effect of the settlement agreement in order for it to be legally binding. The employer will normally make a contribution to legal fees in this regard.

I have just received Employment Tribunal papers. What should I do?

You should take legal advice as soon as possible. You will need to present a response to the relevant Employment Tribunal office within 28 days of the date on which you were sent a copy of the claim using an ET3 Form. Your response should include your full name, your address, whether you wish to resist the claim in whole or in part and if you wish to resist, on what grounds.

If your response is not submitted within the relevant time limit, or it does not include all of the required information, default judgment may be entered against you or you may be prevented from taking part in the proceedings.

What will it cost to defend an employment law claim?

Our aim is to provide cost-effective advice and manage the case to keep the cost incurred to a minimum. Generally speaking, you will be charged at an hourly rate for the work that we carry out on your behalf.

It is impossible to say at the outset of the case what it will cost to defend the claim, as all cases differ. However, we will give you the best estimate that we can and provide you with regular cost updates.

We understand that there is not only a financial cost to you in defending a claim; there is a cost to your business in terms of the time that it takes for you to deal with the claim (for example, if you are required to attend as a witness at the Tribunal). It may not always be in the interests of your business to defend a claim through to a final hearing. We will therefore discuss ways that you may be able to resolve the dispute more cost effectively, for example, by entering into settlement negotiations via ACAS.

Who pays the legal costs in an employment tribunal dispute?

As a general rule, in the Employment Tribunal, each party bears their own costs.

Costs orders will only be made (at the Tribunal's discretion) in very limited circumstances, where a party or their representative has acted vexatiously, abusively, disruptively or otherwise unreasonably in either the bringing of the proceedings or the way in which they have been conducted.

A costs order can also be made where a claim (or response) has no reasonable prospect of success, where a party has breached an Order or Practice Direction, or where it has become necessary for a hearing to be postponed or adjourned due to a party's actions.

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Our experts are available to advise and guide you on a wide-range of legal matters. Feel free to get in touch.

0800 689 3206 - Monday - Friday: 09:00 - 17:00

No obligation, no pressure. We will only use your information to return your call and you won’t receive marketing emails. A member of our team will get back to you shortly.

0800 689 0831 - Monday - Friday: 09:00 - 17:00

Employment & HR

More about Employment & HR

Advice tailored to you

They offer an overall evaluation of the situation and give best advice towards reaching the desired outcome. They don't use legal jargon and relay advice in practical layman's terms.

The employment team at Forbes is more like an extension of your HR team. What I appreciate most is their proactive approach – they take the time to thoroughly understand our business, offering tailored solutions that are both practical and forward-thinking.

Jennifer Smith has the ability to always seem available and ready to help whenever you need her. Although she is very busy, nothing is ever too much trouble.

Laura McHugh and Ruth Rule-Mullen are both outstanding, providing advice and guidance in a timely manner to mitigate risk and protect the reputation of our business. Advice is straightforward, understandable, using recent and relevant knowledge and experience of the sector.

Everyone is extremely personable and down-to-earth. They offer pragmatic commercial solutions to legal dilemmas and really take the time to understand your business and the issues you face. It has been a pleasure working with them.

Jennifer Smith demonstrated a deep understanding of EDI and sexual harassment and tailored the content provided to fit the needs of our business, to ensure that it was as impactful as possible. She skilfully navigated complex topics, offering real-world examples that resonated with all involved.

Helpful Start to FinishFrom start to finish, Fern was excellent in all facets of the job. She was in contact constantly, advised me on my situation and how to improve my case, and was just an all round pleasure to work with.

Need first class employment legal services contact the team at ForbesExcellent from initial engagement, through to satisfactory completion of the matter. I would highly recommend Fern Gordon - Employment Solicitor and the team at Forbes.

Recognition for our work

Recognition for our work

Employment & HR FAQs

Our dedicated Employment & HR team

Jonathan Holden

Ruth Rule-Mullen

Jennifer Smith

Jo Handler

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Contact Us

Helpful Start to Finish
From start to finish, Fern was excellent in all facets of the job. She was in contact constantly, advised me on my situation and how to improve my case, and was just an all round pleasure to work with.

Need first class employment legal services contact the team at Forbes
Excellent from initial engagement, through to satisfactory completion of the matter. I would highly recommend Fern Gordon - Employment Solicitor and the team at Forbes.