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Practical Employment and Litigation Law Advice |
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Welcome to my website.
If you have furloughed your staff during the Covid 19 shutdown or are concerned as to ‘ what happens next ‘ , or have any questions about employment issues caused by the virus , please consider emailing me . Initial advice is free and is based on the ‘ what is possible’ , in giving clear commercial recommendations to help clients meet their objectives, rather than just facts and legal opinion .
I have been involved since March 2020 in advising business on home working agreements and furlough arrangements including the evolving Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. By 18 October, furlough claims under the CJRS had cost the taxpayer £41.4bn, with costs expected to rise to well over £50bn. I am happy to advise individuals as to their rights and options as well as how businesses can save costs , whilst retaining key employees, in these difficult times.
CJRS November 2020 to March 2021 Guide for Employers .
I was Head of Employment Law at two firms ( Hammonds Squire Sanders and then Norton Rose Fulbright) for around 15 years. During this time I was the recipient of the Lawyer's UK Employment Team of the year Award and annually recognised by the Legal 500 as one of the UK's foremost employment law practitioners until I left to run my own practice which is only just outside the Top 500 ( there is now only me !). I am also an experienced litigator having undertaken commercial and banking litigation for banks like Lloyds and Nat West since the mid 1980s as well as for other large companies like Ernst Young and Monsoon . I have also regularly acted for individuals and have continued to do so over the past decade since I became a sole practitioner. And here we are now , soon to be seeing the anniversary of the the Scheme . Who ( or should I say " WHO " 😏) would have thought ?
I have been an Employment Judge for over 20 years and am a qualified CEDR Mediator undertaking judicial mediations in the Tribunal as well as judging employment disputes. Also , as a consulting solicitor , I assist clients ( both Claimants and Respondents ) in the Employment Tribunal other than ( for obvious reasons of possible conflict ) in my own (London Central ) Region .
My charges are around a third of those sought by partners in the major London law firms. Link to Fees page I am content to have an initial discussion without any charge by email or phone and regularly agree fixed fees . In addition I do not charge for disbursements unless they are significant or pre agreed. I do not send any bill to a client without agreeing it first and I strive to be accessible at all times.
I do of course have full professional indemnity insurance and having setting up my own employment and litigation law consultancy I have ( as you might guess ) really enjoyed the opportunity of working with individuals and SMEs who would not normally want to engage the services of a larger City firm. Work I undertake for employees include Employment Tribunal claims and situations where employees have unexpected disputes with their employer ( including disciplinary hearings ) which may lead to them getting advice on a Settlement Agreements and or restrictive covenants. Litigation work includes County ( including the small claims court ) and High Court civil claims some of which centre on employment disputes eg relating to restrictive covenants. I work regularly with US and European clients and have a good knowledge of employment law in jurisdictions outside the UK as well as experience in dealing with tax and bonus schemes.
If you have time please look at some of the testimonials that I have received whilst paddling my own canoe along with my biography which may give you the confidence to seek my further advice. Please feel free to contact me anytime. An email to me at advice@tim-russell.co.uk is the best way to reach me. I will always respond rapidly to queries . I hope that my clients feel I give commercial and practical advice with clear recommendations. That is my aim.
Authorised and Regulated by the Solicitor’s Regulation Authority
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11/2020
Claimants and respondents should avoid using a 'narrative' style
The EAT has recently held ( in the case of C v D - names kept private due the confidential nature of the case ) that claimants and respondents should avoid using a 'narrative' style in their claims and defences .A statement of case should set out the legal claims factually and not in detail as if a witness statement. The defence can then respond using 'admit', 'not admit' or 'deny' as well as explaining why the respondent has acted lawfully. In practice this is often difficult as unrepresented claimants often fail to particularise their claims even when writing a treatise .But even when a Claimant writes a narrative there is no need for a respondent to respond in kind.
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