Constructive & Wrongful Dismissal

The first step is to try and resolve the issue through Early Conciliation, this could help you avoid going to court altogether.

If the situation is not resolved, the next step is going to an Employment Tribunal. It can be difficult to prove that your employer breached your terms of contract, especially once you are not an employee anymore, so it's important to get legal advice if you are facing a Tribunal hearing.

Our Employment team can help you through the whole process - from Early Conciliation through to a tribunal, making sure you are informed and prepared at every step.

The amount of compensation you can get will depend on your individual case and is usually based on:

• Your loss of any notice period earnings (if you did not work your full notice period)
• If you qualify for a basic award - an amount paid based on your age, length of service and weekly wage.
• Your loss of earnings and benefits while you are looking for a new job (subject to a statutory cap and proof you are looking for a new job)

There are a number of ways you can pay for your legal work:

• Hourly rate - this is how most of our cases are funded. You only pay for the time you use.
• Agreed fixed fees - in more complex cases it might be more cost effective for us to agree a fixed fee for your work.
• Legal expenses insurance - this is legal cover that's often a bolt-on to home insurance. It's worth seeing if you have this as it may cover some or all of your legal fees.
• Trade union membership - if you are a member of a union, they might have something in place that pays your legal fees if you have an employment dispute.
• Your employer - in some instances your employer may pay some of your costs (this can be the case if you are negotiating a settlement agreement).
• Third party funding - this is where someone who isn't directly involved in your case agrees to pay your costs.
• Crowd funding - it may be possible to crowd fund your case using the CrowdJustice website (particularly if it's of public interest).

We can review your options in an initial meeting and let you know how to best pay for your case.

Make sure to have any relevant membership/insurance documents to hand – they’ll help us to understand any cover you already have.

There are five reasons why an employer can dismiss you. These are based on:

1. Your conduct at work
2. Your capacity to do your job
3. The business facing a redundancy situation
4. Your continued employment breaks the law
5. Another substantial reason that depends on the facts of your individual case.

It’s important to get legal advice if you think your employer is not treating you fairly. Our solicitors can help identify if you can make a claim against your employer for an unfair dismissal.

We could help you claim constructive dismissal compensation if your employer:

• Demotes you for no reason
• Regularly gives you an unmanageable workload
• Does not investigate a formal grievance you have raised
• Changes your place of work or hours without checking with you
• Allows other employees to bully, harass or discriminate against you
• Does not pay you, regularly pays you late or does not pay your full salary
• Does not give you a safe place to work or proper safety equipment and procedures.

To make a claim, you will need to be classified as an employee and be employed at your current job for at least two years. You will also need to claim within three months of your resignation date.

For a wrongful dismissal claim, an Employment Tribunal or court will only look at your employment contract to see if your employer breached it. There is no minimum period of employment for wrongful dismissal claims. So whether you were suddenly dismissed soon after recruitment or after a promotion, you can still make a wrongful dismissal claim.

Unfair dismissals claims are statutory. This means there are specific laws that apply - for example, you will need to be employed for more than two years at your current employer. They also take into account the whole situation of your dismissal, not just your contract.

Wrongful dismissal is a contractual claim that you make at the High Court. This includes, for example, if your employer didn’t pay your full contractual notice.

Unfair dismissal claims are made at the Employment Tribunal. This includes claims for constructive unfair dismissal, which is when you have been forced to resign because of your employer’s actions.

You may need to have been employed for two continuous years to make an unfair dismissal claim, depending on the circumstances. We can advise you on this.