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Exits & Negotiations

Exits & Negotiations made simple: expert legal guidance for seamless transitions

Expertise in Facilitating Amicable and Effective Workplace Exits

Ending employment relationships can be complex, requiring careful negotiation to ensure outcomes are fair and legally sound. At Ricci & Partners we specialise in managing exits and negotiations, providing strategic advice to both employers and employees to secure the best possible outcomes.

How can we help?

We offer a comprehensive suite of services tailored to manage the legal aspects of workplace exits. Here’s how we can assist:

Negotiated Exits: We work closely with senior executives and HR teams to negotiate exit terms that respect the rights and expectations of all parties. Our approach minimises conflict and facilitates a smooth transition.

Severance Agreements: Our legal experts draft, review, and negotiate severance agreements that comply with employment laws and protect your interests. We ensure that severance terms are fair and equitable, providing peace of mind during a potentially stressful time.

Settlement Agreements: We handle the intricacies of settlement agreements, including those arising from dispute resolutions. Our goal is to secure agreements that avoid costly litigation, while safeguarding your reputation and future opportunities.

Executive Departures: Handling the departure of key executives requires tact and comprehensive legal oversight. We provide counsel on contractual obligations, compensation packages, non-compete clauses, and other critical elements involved in high-level exits.

Dispute Resolution: When disputes arise during the exit process, we are prepared to intervene with alternative dispute resolution services to reach an amicable resolution without the need for litigation.

Post-Employment Compliance and Advice: We assist with the enforcement of post-termination obligations such as confidentiality, non-solicitation, and non-compete agreements. Additionally, we offer ongoing legal advice to ensure compliance with these terms.

Why Choose Ricci & Partners?

Tailored Strategies: Each exit scenario is unique. We tailor our strategies to fit the specific circumstances and goals of our clients, ensuring personalised and effective legal solutions.
Expert Negotiators: We are skilled negotiators who strive to achieve the best outcomes while maintaining professionalism and discretion.
Experience Across Industries: We bring extensive experience from working across various industries, understanding the nuances that can influence exit and negotiation strategies.
Commitment to Ethics and Confidentiality: We handle all negotiations and agreements with the utmost confidentiality and a strong commitment to ethical practices.

Justina Ricci

Head of the Department
Employment Lawyer
justina.ricci@ricciandpartners.co.uk

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Frequently Asked Questions

How we can help?

We can approach your employer on your behalf and propose the terms for the termination of your employment. We can also support you in the background, if you prefer to have the conversation with your employer yourself.

Often times, with our support, employees wish to approach their employer first and only if they have no response, or if the employer is not taking them seriously, that we are then instructed to approach the employer directly to propose settlement terms.

What is ‘without prejudice’

A “without prejudice” conversation is a legal term used to describe a type of communication between parties involved in a dispute or potential legal claim. The purpose of these discussions is to encourage open and honest dialogue with the goal of reaching a settlement, without the fear that anything said during the conversation will be used against the speaker in future legal proceedings.

Key characteristics of “without prejudice” conversations include:

Confidentiality: Statements made during without prejudice discussions are considered confidential and cannot be disclosed to the court or other parties in the event that the dispute escalates into litigation.

Legal Protection: The without prejudice rule is designed to promote settlement negotiations by allowing parties to speak freely about their positions, without the risk that these statements will be used as evidence against them in court.

Settlement Discussions: Without prejudice communications often occur in the context of settlement discussions. Parties may explore various options and compromises without the fear that their statements will be later used against them if an agreement is not reached.

Exceptions: It’s important to note that not all conversations labeled as “without prejudice” are automatically protected. For the protection to apply, there must be a genuine attempt to settle a dispute. If there is no dispute or if the communication is not a bona fide attempt to reach a resolution, the without prejudice protection may not apply.

“Without prejudice” discussions are a valuable tool in alternative dispute resolution processes, such as mediation or negotiation, allowing parties to explore solutions without the fear of prejudicing their legal positions. It’s essential to consult with legal professionals to understand the specific implications and requirements of without prejudice communications in your jurisdiction and circumstances.

What if I am not happy with what is being offered?

If you are not happy with what is being proposed, we can approach your employer to negotiate a better deal on your behalf or support you if you prefer to do so yourself.

At Ricci & Partners, we have extensive experience and expertise in negotiating a better deal than initially offered and are know for our tenacity and ability to present your case to your employer in a way that makes settlement the most attractive option for them.

Do I have to sign the agreement?

If parties reach a settlement during without prejudice discussions, the terms of the agreement are typically documented in a formal settlement agreement.

If you sign a settlement agreement you will be precluded from bringing any claim against your employer (usually except for accrued pension rights and latent personal injury claims).

We will review and advise you on the terms and effects of the settlement agreement and will help you negotiate the terms that protect you.

How much will it cost me?

For the settlement agreement to be valid, you will need to be advised on the terms and effects of the settlement agreement.

It is therefore usual to request that your employer contributes towards your legal fees. This will be anywhere between £350 to £1,000 plus VAT. In some instances it may be more, but it will be rare.

If you wish us to negotiate the terms of offer, then the employer’s contribution may not be sufficient. To negotiate an exit from your employer will depend on how co-operative your employer is and the fees may range between £750 – £1,500. Your employer’s contribution would be deducted from the final fees.

It is important to remember that the higher end of the fees is where your employer agrees to settle. This is because if we approach your employer, and your employer is unwilling to settle there would be no point for you to continue instructing us to negotiate an exit. Instead you may choose to instruct us to issue a claim against your employer which would usually be covered under a no win no fee arrangement.

Can I negotiate a better deal?

We are expert negotiators and can negotiate directly with your employer to get you the best deal possible. This is the case even where you have tried to do this previously yourself but had no success.

We can do this on fixed fee, time fee or no win no fee basis. The terms of negotiation do not always relate to money.

We can help negotiate:

the ex gratia payment and other terms
your notice terms. For example you may wish to be placed on Garden Leave so that you have a better chance of obtaining new employment
confidentiality clauses and restrictive covenants
return of property clauses
clauses where you give indemnity on tax position
other terms

How quickly can this be done?

We can usually schedule an initial call/video meeting on the same day.

The time frames in respect of negotiation will depend on how quickly your employer responds, but from our experience the whole process usually can be completed within 2 weeks or so.

What are the advantages of negotiated exit?

A negotiated exit can be an excellent way to resolve a dispute with your employer and move on to new endeavours without suffering a loss.

If you decide to resign from your employment and then claim compensation, it is usually more difficult to negotiate a settlement. This is because you are no longer an employee, and the risk for the employer to ‘get it wrong’ is reduced. Your employer may also prefer to wait and see if you are serious and if you are going to issue a claim.

Legal Fees
Litigate, your legal fees can accumulate very quickly. Even if you are represented on a no win no fee basis, you will have to pay your representative, usually a significant proportion of your winnings (up to 35%).

Reference
Your employer has no legal obligation to provide you with a reference. As such, even if you win your case, your employer will not be obliged to issue you with one. It is therefore usual to agree on the wording of the reference with your employer as part of the term of your settlement agreement. This would oblige your employer to issue a reference with agreed wording when it is requested by your new prospective employer which will make it easier for you to find another employment. You can also include a term that means your employer cannot make bad comments about you that may damage your reputation or your chances of success in obtaining new employment.

Public Judgments
Employment tribunal judgments are public. Therefore when you issue a claim, even if you withdraw it later, there will be a public record of you suing your employer.

Litigation Risk
There is always a litigation risk. Sometimes even the best cases stumble during the hearing. There may be lack of evidence or an uncertain legal point that means that after all the time, costs and effort, no one can guarantee a successful outcome of your case if it proceeds all the way to litigation.

Time
The Tribunals are currently overwhelmed with cases which means that it may take years for you to get your compensation, even if you win your case.

Loss
A lot of the times you will only be entitled to claim for the loss you have suffered. Which means you have to actually suffer the loss in order to claim it (unless you are also bringing a discrimination or a claim where there is a detriment suffered). If you agree a settlement before you have even suffered a loss, if you find a new job immediately after, this will be irrelevant and you will get to keep all the compensation despite the fact that you have never suffered a loss. As such settlement agreements are usually the best option commercially.

Tax
Compensation payments for the loss of employment or injury to feelings can be paid tax free up to £30,000

What should I expect to get?

A lot will depend on the circumstances. The following financial payments would generally be included

Benefits
All your contractual benefits up until the termination of employment. This would include your salary, may include a bonus and commission and other benefits such as health care insurance, death in service benefit, gym membership and others;

Pilon
Payment in lieu of your notice. You can usually choose to be paid in lieu of your notice (which means your employment would terminate immediately) or you can request that your employment terminates in the future, but that you remain on garden leave until such time. We can discuss the pros and cons of either during our appointment, however this payment is normally non negotiable, unless you are subject to gross misconduct proceedings that are well evidenced;

Holiday Pay
If you have accrued any holiday that you did not get a chance to take before the termination of your employment, these should be paid to you in lieu. If you have taken over your allowance, you would usually expect to negotiate that your employer will not be deducting these from your final payment.

Ex Gratia Payment
This payment is normally made in consideration of you entering into this agreement and assuring the employer that you will not bring a claim against them. Ex – gratia payment is to intended to compensate you for the loss of your employment and for any breaches of your statutory rights that you have suffered. Up to £30,000 of this payment is usually tax free;

Redundancy Payment
If you are being made redundant you should also receive your redundancy payment. It may be that your redundancy payment will be included within the ex gratia payment;

Bonus
It is quite usual for the employment contract to contain a clause that deprives you of any bonus if your employment is subject to notice, or it has terminated. As such bonus may form a significant consideration for you when deciding whether to accept a settlement agreement.

Shares
Arrangements in respect of long term incentive plans and shares must be discussed and considered before you enter into a settlement agreement. This is because you may be subject to ‘bad leaver’ or ‘good leaver’ provisions within any share/incentive plan scheme. If you are expected to release those options, you would usually expect to be paid for those under the terms of the settlement agreement.

Confidentiality Consideration
Your employer may also wish to pay you a small sum as consideration for you to agree to keep the terms of the agreement confidential and not to make any derogatory comments about your employer or any of their officers, employees and any other stakeholders.

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