Services
Employment Law
Senior employment lawyers for businesses at every stage – from start-ups navigating their first employment issue to established businesses managing complex disputes, restructuring and senior exits.
Senior employment advice, calibrated to your business
When you instruct Arbor Law on an employment matter, you work directly with senior employment lawyers who have served as employment partners at City and international firms or in-house counsel inside organisations. We give you a clear picture of where you stand, set out your options in plain English, and run the matter in whatever format works for your organisation.
We are here to help you make decisions that are right for your business with a clear understanding of the risks and the options available to you.
What you get when you instruct Arbor Law on an employment matter
A senior employment lawyer on the file from day one
Employment matters can escalate quickly and in unexpected directions – the value of having a senior lawyer assisting you from day one is that the key issues are identified early, before the options narrow, or escalate beyond your control. At Arbor Law, we do not place barriers between you and the senior advice you need when employment issues are so often sensitive, fast-moving or likely to affect your wider organisation.
Advice that holds the legal, commercial and people picture together
Employment issues rarely arise in isolation from the rest of the business. How a difficult dismissal is handled, how a restructure is communicated or how a grievance is managed can affect your organisation’s culture, staff morale, and outside reputation, as well as the legal outcome. Our lawyers keep that wider picture in view, so the advice you receive is grounded in what actually matters to your organisation, not only what is defensible on paper.
An engagement model that adapts to your needs
Some businesses need intensive support through a specific project – a restructure, a tribunal claim or a difficult senior exit. Others need a reliable adviser available for day-to-day questions as they arise, whether that is a quick call about a commission clause or ongoing support through a collective redundancy process. Our model is designed to adapt to your needs rather than asking you to fit an engagement structure that suits the firm more than it suits you.
We offer hourly rates, fixed fees for specific pieces of work, and retainer arrangements – including monthly hour packages that you can use however you need, whether that is handling a live dispute or using a quieter period for training.
A working pattern that fits your business
We work alongside whoever in your organisation is responsible for dealing with employment matters – whether that is a dedicated HR director, an in-house legal team, an office manager who has been handed something they were not expecting, or a founder dealing with their first difficult employment situation. For some businesses, we effectively act as their employment law and HR function until they are ready to build one of their own. The aim is always to act as a natural extension of your team rather than another external supplier to manage.
Where you want us to lead the matter end to end, we do that. Where you want to handle it yourself and use us for senior input at the points that need it, we do that too. The level of involvement is entirely determined by what works best for you and your organisation.
City-grade legal advice at the right price point
Arbor Law was built to give you access to senior, City-trained lawyers without the leverage and overhead of a traditional firm – which matters particularly in employment, where the work can range from a quick question on a contract term, to negotiating a sensitive senior exit, to defending a tribunal claim running over several years. Our model gives you reliable access to senior advice proportionate to the support you need, not the size of the team behind it.
Employment support from first hire to final exit
From putting the right contractual foundations in place at the start of an employment relationship, through managing performance, sickness and grievances, to handling exits and defending claims, we provide employment support across the full range of issues a business is likely to face, with advice that is clear, proportionate and focused on the right outcome for your organisation.
What the engagement looks like in practice
Good employment legal advice tends to have the same hallmarks regardless of the specific matter: senior eyes on the file early, an honest assessment of the position, a clear view on what needs to happen and in what order, and a steady hand when something difficult develops.
Clients come to us at very different points. Some arrive with a clear sense of what they are dealing with and need focused legal input on specific aspects. Others are at the beginning of an employment situation and are not yet sure how serious it is or what the right approach is – which is often where the most useful advice is given. We help you understand the position clearly before deciding how to respond and to identify early which issues need careful management and which are straightforward.
Where matters become disputed – a tribunal claim, a disciplinary process that has escalated, or a protected conversation or without prejudice negotiation that is not going smoothly – we handle them the way an experienced employment lawyer would: senior-led, calibrated to the commercial and people picture, and with your organisation’s wider interests firmly in view. If the right course of action changes as the matter develops, we will say so and recommend the alternative.
When you instruct Arbor Law on an employment matter, you can expect a senior-led view on the position quickly, a clear plan of what we are doing and why, and a single named lawyer accountable for the matter from start to finish.
Our employment law services to support your business, your people and your decision-making
Employment issues take many forms, but the underlying need tends to be the same: experienced legal support that helps you manage risk early, handle sensitive situations carefully and keep the business moving. We advise across a broad range of employment matters, shaping our support around the practical pressures you are dealing with.
Employment contracts, handbooks and policies
Every employee should have a written contract that accurately reflects the terms of their role. We draft and review employment contracts across all levels – from senior executive agreements to standard terms for wider teams – ensuring they are legally compliant, clearly written and tailored to your organisation.
Alongside contracts, having the right policies and handbooks in place matters both legally and practically. Some policies are a legal requirement – such as disciplinary, grievance and health and safety policies – and the absence of others, such as those covering sexual harassment, discrimination and whistleblowing, can significantly increase legal exposure if an issue arises.
We draft staff handbooks and standalone policies that set out expectations clearly, give managers a consistent framework for handling workplace situations and reduce the risk of disputes arising in the first place.
Day-to-day employment advice and support
Employment law is complex, fast-moving and does not always work the way people expect – and most businesses encounter situations where they are genuinely unsure of the right course of action. We provide ongoing support across the full range of day-to-day employment queries, including sickness absence and ill-health, poor performance, disciplinary matters, grievances, whistleblowing, discrimination, bullying and harassment, family-related rights, flexible working and employment status.
We can act as a trusted external adviser for any business that needs reliable employment law support – available when issues arise and responsive enough to give clear, practical advice without you having to explain the background from scratch every time, whether you have an established HR or in-house legal function or are dealing with employment matters without one. We are easy to reach and give you a straight answer promptly – not a week’s wait and a lengthy note that does not quite address the practical question you needed help with.
Managing difficult employment relationships
When working relationships have broken down or are showing serious signs of strain, knowing how to respond lawfully but commercially can be genuinely difficult. We help businesses navigate these situations, identifying the most appropriate response in light of the legal and practical risks– whether that means internal resolution, a pre-termination conversation resulting in a settlement, or a more formal process that may lead to a dismissal.
We can support you through difficult conversations, advise on pre-termination negotiations and draft and negotiate settlement agreements where that is the right outcome, always with a focus on safeguarding your interests and reducing the risk of subsequent claims.
Employment tribunal claims
When a tribunal claim lands, understanding your legal position quickly and accurately matters: the exposure can be significant in financial and reputational terms, but the right early advice can also open up routes to resolution that are considerably less costly than a full hearing. The tribunal imposes strict deadlines for a formal response to the claim, and what is pleaded in the response document is of crucial importance to mounting a successful defence and litigation strategy.
We help you assess the merits of the claim, advise on the likely value and potential consequences, and recommend a litigation strategy. From unfair dismissal and breach of contract to discrimination and whistleblowing, we handle employment claims of every kind – representing your business directly with the claimant’s representatives and the tribunal. Throughout, we keep your wider commercial circumstances in view, because the right litigation strategy is rarely just about the legal merits of the claim.
Restructuring, redundancy and TUPE
Restructuring a business or making redundancies can often be complex, and the legal requirements around consultation and selection for redundancy must be followed carefully to reduce the risk of claims further down the line. We advise on restructuring and redundancy processes of all kinds, helping you follow the legal requirements correctly and treat the people affected fairly.
Where employees transfer as part of a business sale, outsourcing arrangement or change of service provider, the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations – known as TUPE – impose specific obligations around consultation, the election of employee representatives, mandatory information to be provided, and the protection of employment terms. We advise on those obligations and help you manage the transfer process in a way that is legally compliant, well-documented and as smooth as possible for everyone involved.
Employment aspects of mergers and acquisitions
Business sales and acquisitions raise a range of employment law issues that need careful management at every stage of the deal process. We advise on the employment dimensions of M&A transactions, from initial due diligence through to contractual negotiation and drafting, TUPE obligations where employees are transferring as part of the deal, and the practical employment issues that arise on the ground both before completion and during the post-deal integration period.
Employment law training
Understanding employment law – and knowing how to apply it in practice – reduces the risk of costly mistakes and gives managers the confidence to handle workplace situations consistently and lawfully. We provide bespoke training to businesses on a wide range of employment law topics, including disciplining and dismissing employees, conducting workplace investigations, discrimination, bullying and harassment, and preparing for and understanding the employment tribunal process.
We also provide training on forthcoming changes to the law, so your managers and HR teams are prepared in advance rather than reacting after the fact. Training can be delivered in whatever format works best for your organisation, from full-day or half-day workshops to shorter targeted sessions.
Get in touch today
If an employment matter is on your desk, the sooner the right lawyer sees it the better. Send us a short note about what you are dealing with and one of us will come back to you personally, often the same day, to talk it through. The first conversation is on us, and if we are not the right firm for the job we will tell you and, where we can, point you to someone who is.
- info@arbor.law
- 20 North Audley Street, London W1K 6WE
