Dispute Resolution

Our Approach & Track Record

GQ|Littler is the leading employment law firm for employers in the UK and Ireland. We offer risk-based advice and litigation services on employment, immigration, employee tax and incentives issues. We work globally as part of Littler, the world’s largest employment law firm with more than 1,800 lawyers practising across 28 countries in over 100 offices.

While we can’t make employment disputes disappear, we can promise a modern, dynamic, solution-based approach.

What makes us different:

  • Experts in High Court employment litigation
  • Risk management and psychology underpin our practical approach
  • Committed to fee flexibility and transparency
  • Global employment boutique

Our team is highly experienced in advising on employment litigation: we are one of the few employment law teams that are as adept in High Court litigation as we are in employment tribunals.

We run litigation according to your needs and means and constantly strive to achieve the best result for you. You need the best team: one that is on top of the law but also the tactics of litigation. Understanding both your opponent’s mindset and your attitude to risk is fundamental to our approach to litigation.

We have the scale to manage major disputes, including large scale document review and disclosure exercises (for example, we recently completed a disclosure exercise involving 1,400,000 documents). We also have strong relationships with a number of global specialist e-disclosure and forensic IT providers.

You may find it helpful to take a look at our 'Employers' Alternative Guide to Resolving Disputes'.

Our Team's Experience

High Court – Breach of Contract

Our lawyers have wide-ranging complex, high-value High Court litigation in both the UK and Ireland concerning breach of contract disputes and employment injunctions including:

  • Advising a technology firm on the recovery of unlawfully exported sensitive confidential information by an ex- employee and successfully obtaining a High Court injunction to preserve the exported information and to secure the return of that information.
  • Defending a major City bank against one of the largest multi-party bonus claims ever.
  • Defending a company in a multi-million-pound claim brought by a consultant for unpaid fees.
  • Successfully defending a client against a complex judicial review claim of race discrimination brought by multiple Claimants in the High Court.
  • Defending a FTSE 250 financial institution against a highly complex multi-million-pound High Court claim brought by a former consultant and successfully obtaining security for costs.

Employment Tribunal/WRC – High Value

We are adept at managing high value, complex employment tribunal litigation, including:

  • Defending a bank on a multi-million-pound sex discrimination/victimisation claim and negotiating a favourable settlement.
  • Successfully defending an international financial services institution against a high value disability and sex discrimination claim.
  • Resolving a number of high-value disability discrimination claims through mediation.
  • Defending a well-known commercial bank in relation to two claims issued by separate senior individuals bringing high value employment tribunal claims against the bank.
  • Defending an international hedge fund in the first UK employment tribunal disability discrimination claim involving motor neurone disease in a case that attracted press interest.

High Court – Team Moves

We are experienced in bringing and defending proceedings arising when a team moves in breach of their restrictive covenants, including:

  • Successfully representing a bank in an injunction against a group of former employees who were setting up a business in breach of non-competes.
  • Defending a marketing company in a multi-defendant unlawful conspiracy claim in the High Court worth over £100 million.
  • Successfully reaching a mediated settlement on behalf of a company who had lost a number of members of staff to a competitor. The company reclaimed most of its costs and delayed the key employees’ joining date.
  • Successfully defending a major supplier of two-way radios, in a complex High Court claim against two former senior executives in relation to issues of fiduciary duty, confidential information and seeking “Wrotham Park Damages”.

Employment Tribunal/WRC – Unfair Dismissal

We can also handle lower value claims in a commercially realistic way. We have value-based fee structures so claims can be defended on grounds of principle.

Examples include:

  • Successfully defending an unfair dismissal claim from a former employee dismissed for bringing the bank into disrepute.
  • Successfully defending an unfair dismissal claim against a bank by a former employee who had been dishonestly running a separate business and using work resources.
  • Successfully getting unfair dismissal proceedings against a UK company brought by a US employee struck out for lack of territorial jurisdiction.

What Others Say:

‘GQ|Littler is an exceptional boutique employment practice specialising in disputes involving top executives and high earners. The quality of their legal skills and strategic thinking really is first-rate.’

Legal 500, 2023

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