Employment Contract Dispute Barristers

Not every employment dispute is about statutory rights. Many are straightforward contract claims: your employer ended your employment without the notice it owed, withheld a bonus or commission, failed to pay contractual sick pay or enhanced redundancy pay, or is now trying to enforce a restrictive covenant against you. These claims turn on the written terms, any documents incorporated into the contract such as a handbook or bonus plan, and the terms the law implies.

Wrongful dismissal is the classic example. It is dismissal in breach of contract, usually without proper notice, and it is different from unfair dismissal: it needs no qualifying service and the tribunal does not ask whether dismissing you was reasonable, only whether the contract was broken. An employer can dismiss without notice only for gross misconduct amounting to a repudiatory breach by the employee. Employees with at least a month's service are entitled to the statutory minimum notice in section 86 of the Employment Rights Act 1996: one week until two years' service, then one week for each complete year up to twelve weeks, or longer if the contract says so. Damages are generally limited to the pay and benefits you would have received during the notice period, less what you earn elsewhere.

Where you bring the claim matters. The Employment Tribunal can hear breach of contract claims that arise or are outstanding when employment ends, but its award is capped at £25,000 and the employer can counterclaim. The claim must follow ACAS early conciliation; the time limit is three months less one day from termination where employment ended before 1 October 2026, and six months for terminations on or after that date. The County Court and High Court have no such cap, can hear claims during employment, and allow six years from the breach. Higher value claims, or claims about restrictive covenants and confidential information, usually belong in the civil courts.

Bonus disputes are fact-sensitive. Even where a bonus is described as discretionary, the employer must exercise its discretion rationally and in good faith, not perversely or for an improper purpose. Restrictive covenants are enforceable only if they protect a legitimate business interest and go no further than reasonably necessary. A Direct Access Barrister can advise, draft letters of claim and pleadings, and appear in the tribunal or court. You file and serve documents and conduct correspondence. Urgent injunction proceedings over covenants can be demanding to run without a Solicitor, and your Barrister will tell you if that is the case.

1. 1

   Contract Review

   Your Barrister reads the contract, incorporated policies and any bonus or share scheme rules alongside the circumstances of termination, and identifies exactly which term was broken.

2. 2

   Choosing the Forum

   Your Barrister weighs the tribunal, with its £25,000 cap and usually no costs risk, against the County Court or High Court, where there is no cap but the loser usually pays the winner's costs.

3. 3

   Letter of Claim

   Your Barrister drafts a letter setting out the claim and the sum due. For a court claim this follows the pre-action conduct expectations and often prompts a response or offer.

4. 4

   Issuing the Claim

   For the tribunal you notify ACAS and submit the ET1. For the court you issue a claim form with particulars of claim your Barrister has drafted, and serve it on the employer.

5. 5

   Evidence

   Documents and witness statements are exchanged. In bonus cases this often includes the employer's internal decision-making records, which can reveal how the discretion was really exercised.

6. 6

   Hearing

   Your Barrister presents the case on the contract terms, cross-examines the employer's witnesses and addresses damages, including any credit for earnings elsewhere.