Settlement Agreements

We are experts at planning and negotiating exit packages and advising on settlement agreements.

In many cases, for individuals and organisations, the build up to the completion of a settlement agreement can be daunting and tricky.

Our specialist knowledge, skills and ability can help with the process.

Whether mapping out strategy, reviewing / negotiating the financial and commercial terms (for example around confidentiality obligations and non compete provisions), or something different, our Sarah Forster has a reputation for providing robust support and advice and significant gains for her clients.

Sarah’s client base has always been split roughly 50/50 between individuals and employers – which has given her a unique experience and the tools to see things from both sides of the fence and give her clients, individual or employer, the right advice.

Sarah has supported many employers, from sme’s to plc’s across a multitude of sectors, exiting employees and settling their terms of departure.

For individuals, Sarah’s work has included:

• Guiding an employee faced with dismissal for gross misconduct initiate settlement discussions with their employer, resulting in their departure by consent on generous terms;
• Advising a senior executive of a plc on an exit package proposed by the board, guiding them through the process to achieve an improved package on an amicable basis with confident messaging, enabling the senior executive to move on quickly and with certainty.

Please contact us for a no obligation discussion.

If you do instruct us, Sarah Forster will represent you and our retainer will be agreed in writing in our Engagement Letter, Terms of Business and Client Privacy Policy.

Our standard approach to pricing is to use an hourly fee rate which is £300 plus VAT (currently @ 20%).

For individuals: the recommended minimum employer contribution of £500 plus VAT towards fees will in many cases be sufficient if there are no substantial changes that you want to ask your employer for.

If you are required to sign a second agreement (often called a ‘reaffirmation letter’) with the same employer at a later date our minimum fee will be £300 plus VAT for the reaffirmation letter.

If you require further work and your costs exceed £500 plus VAT for a settlement agreement, £300 plus VAT for a reaffirmation letter (or such higher amounts agreed by your employer), you will be responsible for the balance of fees chargeable on the basis of time spent against our hourly rate of £300 plus VAT in order to complete the work required.

For organisations: our costs will depend on the amount of work that you require, e.g. whether you require us to draft / review the settlement agreement, advise on strategy, the settlement proposals and discussions.