Business Legal Services
Employment Law
Our employment solicitors know employment law inside out and can support employers with all aspects of employment, ranging from drafting policies to defending employment claims.
Your people are often your biggest asset, but if employment goes wrong, it can cost you time, money and stress. Put yourself on the right track from the start and let our industry-leading employment experts take the hassle out of your HR.
Our employment law solicitors can support your business with:
Absence and sickness management
We can draft relevant policies and procedures, review your current ones and suggest updates. We’ll be happy to advise you on long and short-term absences.
Business immigration
Navigating the latest rules in business immigration law can be complex and time-consuming. If you need help hiring talent from outside the UK, our specialist business immigration solicitors can guide you from recruitment through all stages of the employment relationship.
Defending Employment Tribunal claims
Our Employment Tribunal experts will be by your side for every step of the process. We’ll quickly get to grips with case background and agree a strategy with you. We can draft ET3 defence forms, organise representation and take care of the overall process and documentation. Our expertise in agreeing settlements means we can also carry out sensitive negotiations for you.
Drafting HR policies and procedures
Engaging legal experts to draft your policies and procedures is the only way you can be sure they are fair, reasonable and precise. Our employment solicitors’ experience is practical as well as theoretical, and we can share our advice on what policies are appropriate and how to implement them.
Employee and other staff contracts
From templates for simple employment contracts to bespoke contracts for specialist roles or arrangements, including for workers and consultants, we can draft all of your employment documentation.
Employee share schemes
Our extensive knowledge of employee share schemes allows us to recommend the best scheme for your staff and circumstances. We’ll factor your budget and any regulation compliance into our solutions.
HR and employment law training
We can provide tailored training to help your business identify, manage, resolve and prevent employment related issues in the workplace and stay up-to-date on the ever-changing UK employment laws.
HR compliance audit
Follow best practice, identify missing documents, ensure compliance with current employment legislation and avoid costly disputes with an HR Audit. This is a fixed fee service conducted by senior employment solicitors.
Managing disciplinary and grievance procedures
Making sure your disciplinary and grievance procedures are clear, compliant and protect your business is an important job that our specialists can manage for you. A general review of your employment policies, procedures and contracts can reduce grievances and staff issues. We can also advise on the best way to handle the disciplinary and grievance process.
Redundancies and business reorganisation
We understand how hard it is to reorganise your business or make redundancies. Talk to our experts early on in the process and let us guide you through the practicalities and legalities of a correct and fair redundancy process.
Settlement agreements
Our experienced employment solicitors can draft settlement agreements, make settlement proposals and negotiate these on your behalf.
Stress and bullying in the workplace
If you need help drafting a stress and bullying policy or practical support with avoiding or managing this type of complaint, talk to our employment lawyers.
Transactions and TUPE advice
We can advise you on the employment aspects of any transaction, including how and when TUPE will apply to your transaction, disposal or outsourcing agreement.
How can our employment law solicitors make a difference to your business?
Save time and money
Employment law changes all the time. We make it our business to keep up to date with the latest changes and rulings. Work with us and you’ll spend less time researching compliance with employment law. Consulting our employment solicitors early about your policies and procedures and how to manage particular employee issues will help minimise future problems later on.
Lessen the risk of future employment claims
Talking to our friendly employment law team as soon as an issue arises will help solve problems sooner. It will also reduce the chance of Employment Tribunal claims being brought against your business. Employment claims are a distraction from running your core business, they can also be lengthy and very costly, both financially and reputationally.
Robust and well-drafted documents
There’s no substitute for having your documents drafted by a professional employment solicitor. Your employment documentation should cover what you intend it to and protect your business. You can tell us what you want to achieve and we can draft it in the right legal terms. For example, well-drafted restrictive covenants will limit certain activities of former employees which could be damaging to your business, but vague, poorly drafted or non-existent covenants will not give your business this future protection.
Recruit and retain productive employees
Make sure that your talent policies are in order, that you are consultative and fair and have clear and transparent processes throughout your business. Our partner-level solicitors can help draft policies which are thorough and precise but easy to understand and implement. You can also ask us about employee share schemes; we can share our knowledge and experience about this area to help you to attract and retain your staff, whom you have worked hard to recruit and train.
We’ve also produced lots of useful resources and advice on legal matters for employers in the employment law area of our Knowledge Hub.
Who we help: Employers of all sizes and from a variety of sectors all over the UK
Harper James Solicitors supports a wide range of UK-based employer clients. Our employment specialists advise HR directors, managers and founders across all sectors whether they are start-ups, SMEs or large multinationals. We can support your business with the full range of employment and HR legal services: from policies to contracts, grievances and disputes.
Testimonials
What our clients say
As a young and growing fintech company, there have been a number of legal matters that we have needed to manage; such as client contracts, employment contracts and fund raising from investors. We’ve used Harper James for around a year and they have provided us with very valuable support through several lenses, not least in our funding round in late 2017, where we raised £1million and Harper James managed the legal side of the transaction. We recommend them without hesitation.
Gareth Morgan
Chief Risk and Compliance Officer,
Delio
Harper James provides my small growing business with a scalable, reliable, team-oriented approach to legal advice. Whenever we face a problem, I know that Harper James are there to provide helpful and cost-effective advice, to scope out the options, make clear the costs and risks, and give me the information I need to make decisions.
Bryn Richards
CEO,
Aeristech
We rely on Harper James to provide us with support across a full range of service areas, from commercial contracts and employment issues to fundraisings and investments. The team at Harper James are always available to provide us with cost effective, pragmatic and commercially focused advice.
Nick Holzherr
CEO,
Whisk.com
Harper James is a brilliant example of a company disrupting a traditional industry. Suddenly Solicitors become relevant and accessible for start-ups & small enterprises, with the best in-class knowledge of all major legal areas. I’ve used the business now for a year, and the Enable plan has been perfect for budgeting my company’s outgoings, and has given me a piece of mind when tackling key, decisive issues. Thank-you HJS!
Koral Ibrahim
Founder & MD,
The Ready House
As a University spin-out getting the right team of lawyers to support our emerging business was fundamental and the team are always available to provide us with the invaluable guidance and support we require.
David Hodgson
CEO,
Amalyst
Harper James have been a pleasure to work with. We dealt with another firm before approaching them who we had to leave because they were too slow and unresponsive. By the time we met Harper James we were urgently needing to progress quickly. They turned our project around at lightning speed for us and saved the day. Thank you!
Adam Bateman
Director,
Push Security Ltd
Over the years Harper James have helped us navigate complex legal issues and red tape, providing distilled options and legal consultancy that far exceeds the service levels we’ve previously experienced from more traditional law firms. The team act like our own in-house counsel so, regardless of which lawyer we work with, we feel supported and that they truly have our best interests at heart.
Michael Edwards
Co-Founder,
Inspire Group
We are always impressed with both the speed of response and understanding of the situation.
Jon Mason
Commercial Director,
Call Assist Ltd
Quite frankly I was stunned at the low cost of the service given the value it provided us.
Dr Matthew Carr
CEO,
Luffy.ai
Harper James never fail to impress with the speed and efficiency of their service, no matter the query. The team are friendly, knowledgeable and always on hand.
Karis Walker
Project Managing Officer,
Thyssenkrupp
Fast, flexible access to specialists.
Derek Moore
CEO and Co-Founder,
Coffee & TV
...very efficient and helpful, especially given that it was difficult logistically with most of the directors away!
Adam Fraser-Harris
Finance Director,
Blow Ltd
Always great to have HJ on hand
Lucy Lam Po Tang
Head of Operations,
Kite Global Advisors
For us, the support of Harper James Solicitors has been a gift. The collaboration we have had has been of tremendous importance. The service has been superb value for money.
Iraklis Bourantas
COO,
Novoville
We often need legal advice quickly, especially during sales with new customers, and Rob is very responsive and always available for meetings. When I was looking for a law firm, I wanted that full range of services, as I knew we’d need advice outside of the tech remit. The flexibility has been really positive.
Ivan Harding
CEO and Co-Founder,
Applaud
Harper James have been incredibly professional and responsive. They immediately understood the challenges we have. Not only those of any small business, but those relating to building a piece of complex tech, and they have been able to help us navigate that from a legal perspective.
Alastair MacGregor
Founder,
Do IT
Harper James removes the stress for us. I know that we can get advice quickly, without some sort of golden clock being turned on when you pick up the phone. This means we can focus on running the business.
Tom Davenport
Co-Founder,
TalentPool
We initially turned to Harper James for help in one part of our business but quickly realised we could benefit from their support in other areas too. The level of service has been impressive. What I like about Harper James is they seem to take a proactive approach to legal services provision. They’ve looked at our business and made suggestions as to areas where they can best focus their support and expertise. It is reassuring to have a legal services provider like that working alongside you.
Heidi Ayton
Chief of Compliance,
Croud
Harper James are our trusted legal adviser and having them by our side at key moments in our business growth, knowing we are protected, is immensely reassuring.
Chris Mason
CEO,
Namos Solutions
Experience of your team and how they make it simple to understand the options and what is required.
Value for money.
Paul Smith
COO,
Incuto
Stephen was very helpful, pragmatic and where appropriate, entertaining. We were grateful for the way Stephen advised us in layman’s terms, showing patience to ensure we understood the transaction and were able to move to completion. I value the relationship we have developed with Harper James over the last few years and would recommend them to others.
Jon Arcos
Founder & CEO,
Axis Spine Technologies
As an extend client with Harper James I like the assurance of having a legal services provider which is there as and when the business needs it.
Will Richardson
CEO,
Wayland Additive
The team at Harper James has got to know our business over 3 years and is super responsive, adaptable and versatile to our needs. The lawyers are helpful and just really nice people who we’ve come to trust.
Aela Callan
Co-founder,
Head Set Studio Limited
Harper James is the right fit for us, I was attracted to the firm by the experience and reputation of their large team of specialist solicitors. And best of all, I have this support at a price point that’s very competitive compared to their competition.
Andrew Worsley
Chairman,
Harbour Healthcare
Ease of use, a familiar legal team supporting my business who understand my business, and provide value for money.
Daniel Lawrence
CEO,
Bots For That Ltd
Always a very efficient service, communication is also excellent. Feel in safe hands.
Kate Fraser
Compliance Manager,
Premier Education Group
I was put in contact with Ella Bond about an employment issue. Ella was most helpful. She always responded to my emails quickly and gave us some options to think about to try to solve the matter. Thank you Ella.
Jo Phillibrown
Office Manager,
Ascend Broking Group Ltd
Harper James has been instrumental in our growth and success. Their expert guidance has transformed the way we operate, enabling us to implement best practices across various areas of our business. Thanks to their support, we now operate with a level of maturity and sophistication that sets us apart from other organisations of our size.
Nick Clapham
Managing Director,
VirtueUK
The Enable plan is such a great fit for an organisation like ours. It gives us the benefit of tapping into different experts when we need them, helping our business grow.
Nick Clapham
Managing Director,
VirtueUK
The employment team, particularly Sean Walsh, has been instrumental in providing real-time advice on the challenges that arise with a rapidly growing team
Raj Batra
Founder,
Diistil
The teams have been incredibly efficient. They're not only easy to communicate with, but also highly knowledgeable, and consistently able to meet even tight deadlines. What truly sets Harper James apart is the access we have to a comprehensive range of legal experts – spanning employment law, commercial law, and data protection – all within an affordable subscription model that offers greater flexibility. This allows us to implement processes and put appropriate measures in place, without the typical charging constraints of a traditional law firm.
Raj Batra
Founder,
Diistil
For any small business looking for the right law firm to guide you through an acquisition I would highly recommend Harper James. My personal experience was with Matt Shakesheff who looked after my sale and passed me over to their team who looked over my new contract of employment as I was staying with my buyer for a 2 year handover. They delivered on budget and on time.
Richard William Turbutt
Director,
CorroGuard
In my experience, solicitors speak a completely different language than anybody else, which can be confusing – especially if the matter at hand is a stressful topic. Simon and the team’s advice has been invaluable. They are solution-driven and didn’t quote the law at us but took the time to deliver advice clearly and concisely, making the legal position easy to understand.
Petra Felgen
UK & Ireland’s Managing Director,
CEWE
As a young and growing fintech company, there have been a number of legal matters that we have needed to manage; such as client contracts, employment contracts and fund raising from investors. We’ve used Harper James for around a year and they have provided us with very valuable support through several lenses, not least in our funding round in late 2017, where we raised £1million and Harper James managed the legal side of the transaction. We recommend them without hesitation.
Gareth Morgan
Chief Risk and Compliance Officer,
Delio
Harper James provides my small growing business with a scalable, reliable, team-oriented approach to legal advice. Whenever we face a problem, I know that Harper James are there to provide helpful and cost-effective advice, to scope out the options, make clear the costs and risks, and give me the information I need to make decisions.
Bryn Richards
CEO,
Aeristech
We rely on Harper James to provide us with support across a full range of service areas, from commercial contracts and employment issues to fundraisings and investments. The team at Harper James are always available to provide us with cost effective, pragmatic and commercially focused advice.
Nick Holzherr
CEO,
Whisk.com
Harper James is a brilliant example of a company disrupting a traditional industry. Suddenly Solicitors become relevant and accessible for start-ups & small enterprises, with the best in-class knowledge of all major legal areas. I’ve used the business now for a year, and the Enable plan has been perfect for budgeting my company’s outgoings, and has given me a piece of mind when tackling key, decisive issues. Thank-you HJS!
Koral Ibrahim
Founder & MD,
The Ready House
As a University spin-out getting the right team of lawyers to support our emerging business was fundamental and the team are always available to provide us with the invaluable guidance and support we require.
David Hodgson
CEO,
Amalyst
Harper James have been a pleasure to work with. We dealt with another firm before approaching them who we had to leave because they were too slow and unresponsive. By the time we met Harper James we were urgently needing to progress quickly. They turned our project around at lightning speed for us and saved the day. Thank you!
Adam Bateman
Director,
Push Security Ltd
Over the years Harper James have helped us navigate complex legal issues and red tape, providing distilled options and legal consultancy that far exceeds the service levels we’ve previously experienced from more traditional law firms. The team act like our own in-house counsel so, regardless of which lawyer we work with, we feel supported and that they truly have our best interests at heart.
Michael Edwards
Co-Founder,
Inspire Group
We are always impressed with both the speed of response and understanding of the situation.
Jon Mason
Commercial Director,
Call Assist Ltd
Quite frankly I was stunned at the low cost of the service given the value it provided us.
Dr Matthew Carr
CEO,
Luffy.ai
Harper James never fail to impress with the speed and efficiency of their service, no matter the query. The team are friendly, knowledgeable and always on hand.
Karis Walker
Project Managing Officer,
Thyssenkrupp
Fast, flexible access to specialists.
Derek Moore
CEO and Co-Founder,
Coffee & TV
...very efficient and helpful, especially given that it was difficult logistically with most of the directors away!
Adam Fraser-Harris
Finance Director,
Blow Ltd
Always great to have HJ on hand
Lucy Lam Po Tang
Head of Operations,
Kite Global Advisors
For us, the support of Harper James Solicitors has been a gift. The collaboration we have had has been of tremendous importance. The service has been superb value for money.
Iraklis Bourantas
COO,
Novoville
We often need legal advice quickly, especially during sales with new customers, and Rob is very responsive and always available for meetings. When I was looking for a law firm, I wanted that full range of services, as I knew we’d need advice outside of the tech remit. The flexibility has been really positive.
Ivan Harding
CEO and Co-Founder,
Applaud
Harper James have been incredibly professional and responsive. They immediately understood the challenges we have. Not only those of any small business, but those relating to building a piece of complex tech, and they have been able to help us navigate that from a legal perspective.
Alastair MacGregor
Founder,
Do IT
Harper James removes the stress for us. I know that we can get advice quickly, without some sort of golden clock being turned on when you pick up the phone. This means we can focus on running the business.
Tom Davenport
Co-Founder,
TalentPool
We initially turned to Harper James for help in one part of our business but quickly realised we could benefit from their support in other areas too. The level of service has been impressive. What I like about Harper James is they seem to take a proactive approach to legal services provision. They’ve looked at our business and made suggestions as to areas where they can best focus their support and expertise. It is reassuring to have a legal services provider like that working alongside you.
Heidi Ayton
Chief of Compliance,
Croud
Harper James are our trusted legal adviser and having them by our side at key moments in our business growth, knowing we are protected, is immensely reassuring.
Chris Mason
CEO,
Namos Solutions
Experience of your team and how they make it simple to understand the options and what is required.
Value for money.
Paul Smith
COO,
Incuto
Stephen was very helpful, pragmatic and where appropriate, entertaining. We were grateful for the way Stephen advised us in layman’s terms, showing patience to ensure we understood the transaction and were able to move to completion. I value the relationship we have developed with Harper James over the last few years and would recommend them to others.
Jon Arcos
Founder & CEO,
Axis Spine Technologies
As an extend client with Harper James I like the assurance of having a legal services provider which is there as and when the business needs it.
Will Richardson
CEO,
Wayland Additive
The team at Harper James has got to know our business over 3 years and is super responsive, adaptable and versatile to our needs. The lawyers are helpful and just really nice people who we’ve come to trust.
Aela Callan
Co-founder,
Head Set Studio Limited
Harper James is the right fit for us, I was attracted to the firm by the experience and reputation of their large team of specialist solicitors. And best of all, I have this support at a price point that’s very competitive compared to their competition.
Andrew Worsley
Chairman,
Harbour Healthcare
Ease of use, a familiar legal team supporting my business who understand my business, and provide value for money.
Daniel Lawrence
CEO,
Bots For That Ltd
Always a very efficient service, communication is also excellent. Feel in safe hands.
Kate Fraser
Compliance Manager,
Premier Education Group
I was put in contact with Ella Bond about an employment issue. Ella was most helpful. She always responded to my emails quickly and gave us some options to think about to try to solve the matter. Thank you Ella.
Jo Phillibrown
Office Manager,
Ascend Broking Group Ltd
Harper James has been instrumental in our growth and success. Their expert guidance has transformed the way we operate, enabling us to implement best practices across various areas of our business. Thanks to their support, we now operate with a level of maturity and sophistication that sets us apart from other organisations of our size.
Nick Clapham
Managing Director,
VirtueUK
The Enable plan is such a great fit for an organisation like ours. It gives us the benefit of tapping into different experts when we need them, helping our business grow.
Nick Clapham
Managing Director,
VirtueUK
The employment team, particularly Sean Walsh, has been instrumental in providing real-time advice on the challenges that arise with a rapidly growing team
Raj Batra
Founder,
Diistil
The teams have been incredibly efficient. They're not only easy to communicate with, but also highly knowledgeable, and consistently able to meet even tight deadlines. What truly sets Harper James apart is the access we have to a comprehensive range of legal experts – spanning employment law, commercial law, and data protection – all within an affordable subscription model that offers greater flexibility. This allows us to implement processes and put appropriate measures in place, without the typical charging constraints of a traditional law firm.
Raj Batra
Founder,
Diistil
For any small business looking for the right law firm to guide you through an acquisition I would highly recommend Harper James. My personal experience was with Matt Shakesheff who looked after my sale and passed me over to their team who looked over my new contract of employment as I was staying with my buyer for a 2 year handover. They delivered on budget and on time.
Richard William Turbutt
Director,
CorroGuard
In my experience, solicitors speak a completely different language than anybody else, which can be confusing – especially if the matter at hand is a stressful topic. Simon and the team’s advice has been invaluable. They are solution-driven and didn’t quote the law at us but took the time to deliver advice clearly and concisely, making the legal position easy to understand.
Petra Felgen
UK & Ireland’s Managing Director,
CEWE
Why choose Harper James Solicitors?
As the law firm for entrepreneurs, we understand the common and complex issues you face as owners and operators. We look to form genuine partnerships with our clients. Our team of mainly remote-based and always accessible senior employment lawyers are the people to call when you need a second opinion, or specialist advice fast.
As your business grows, accessing expert legal support is invaluable. But accessing it at a reasonable price from experienced solicitors that you can rely on is not always so simple. As champions of entrepreneurship, we aim to provide legal advice that’s cost-effective, holistic, and always from an experienced team. That’s why we created our legal subscription plans, helping you build a consistent partnership with our solicitors who will take the time to get to know, not just the matter at hand, but your business strategy and how best to support it with an ongoing relationship.
Most of our employment solicitors are recruited from top 100 UK law firms or from large international businesses and have more than 10 years’ post-qualified experience. Find out more about the team here:
Pricing and service plans
Legal support designed
to fit your business needs
Our three transparent service plans are designed to give you the widest possible access to high-quality legal advice, whatever the size and nature of your business:
Engage
Flexible access to senior solicitors at highly competitive rates
An alternative to our subscription plans, offering access to full service legal expertise on a project-by-project basis.
Enable
Purpose built legal support for start-ups and smaller businesses
Monthly subscription plan for £215 per month, with £145 monthly credit and access to all legal services at 50% discount on our Standard Rates.
Extend
Comprehensive legal partnership for established businesses
Fully account managed and scalable annual subscription plan with support from a curated team of partners and senior solicitors, with up to 34% discount on our Standard Rates.
