Twice in three years the airline based at Exeter Airport stopped flying, and twice many local people found out in a morning what happens to wages, notice pay and redundancy pay when an employer goes into administration. Claims on the government's redundancy payments scheme, protective awards for failure to consult, and the question of whether a rescue buyer took on the staff under TUPE all passed through Exeter's employment solicitors, and the episode is a reminder that employment law in a mid-sized city is about far more than unfair dismissal.
Exeter's workforce is unusually professional. The University of Exeter runs on fixed-term research and teaching contracts, which raise questions about successive renewals and redundancy at the end of a grant. The Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital and the wider NHS trust generate whistleblowing, disability discrimination and sickness-absence cases; the Met Office and County Hall bring civil service and local government grievance and restructuring work; and the growing software and professional firms around the science park and the city centre produce restrictive covenant disputes when people leave to join a competitor. Hospitality and retail in Princesshay and the city centre add wage, holiday pay and tips questions.
Whichever side you are on, the deadline is the same: Acas early conciliation must begin within three months less one day of the dismissal or the act complained of. Claims are heard by the employment tribunal in Exeter or by video, and an Exeter solicitor will know the local judges' approach to case management and settlement.
For employees, first consultations are often free, settlement agreement advice is usually paid for by the employer, and contested claims may be funded on a no-win, no-fee basis or through legal expenses insurance. Employers can buy fixed-fee retainers for contracts, handbooks and day-to-day advice.
Exeter's employment law firms are listed below, verified firms first and then by distance. The general guide to employment law solicitors and the article on employment contract costs give background, and employers may want the business law solicitors in Exeter page too.
