HR Focus - February 2010

This month, guidance has been given on contingency fee agreements (arrangements where lawyers charge their clients, usually Claimants, a fixed percentage of their eventual compensation in exchange for representing them).  New rules set out the requirements for these agreements and cap the percentage which lawyers can claim to 35%.

ACAS has published figures showing that its pre-claim conciliation service is proving successful.  Employers who are in dispute with an employee can use a helpline to get access to a conciliator who will then assist to resolve the disputes.  Evidence suggests that this approach significantly reduces the likelihood of a claim being issued whether this is because the dispute has been resolved or just because employees are better informed about their chances.

If you have any comments, queries or questions for our Q&A feature then please email askemployment@weightmans.com.  Alternatively, you can call Laura Kearsley, Editor on 0121 200 3480. 

In this month’s edition:

Tribunals and whistle-blowing

Mandy Higgins, associate in the Liverpool team discusses the new powers to be given to Tribunals to report alleged wrong-doing to a relevant regulatory body.

Eweida v British Airways

Laura Kearsley, editor and associate in the Midlands team reports on the recent Court of Appeal decision in Eweida v British Airways, concerning the wearing of religious jewellery at work.

Patel v Oldman MBC 

The recent EAT decision in Patel v Oldman MBC is one of those decisions in which one can see the logic behind the EAT's thinking, but which is likely to broaden rather the restrict the scope for future argument: Mark Landon, partner in the London team looks at a recent case which arguably adds to the complexity surrounding whether an individual is disabled for the purposes of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

Relationships in the workplace

In consideration of Valentine’s Day, Phil Pepper, associate in the Midlands team considers the consequences for employers of office romances and what employers can do to lessen any damage that these might have on a business.

Question and Answer

And finally, in our regular Question and Answer feature, Lesley Davison, Chartered MCIPD, Human Resources Manager North, Viridor asks Kevin McKenna, associate in the Manchester team “Can you give some clear direction on "pooling" in redundancy situations?”.

This update does not attempt to provide a full analysis of those matters with which it deals and is provided for general information purposes only and is not intended to constitute legal advice and should not be treated as a substitute for legal advice. Weightmans LLP accepts no responsibility for any loss that may arise from reliance on the information in this update. The copyright in this update is owned by Weightmans.