The Difference Between Ad Hoc Legal Support and an Annual Retainer

Are you the kind of business owner who looks to bring processes and projects in-house, keeping all of your assets within the company, or do you prefer to outsource tasks and seek out the specialist skills of professional contractors?

While there are undoubtedly benefits to covering the specifics of employment law inside your business, the reality is that keeping up to date with employment law is a full-time job. It is not something that can easily be wholly understood and managed by your HR team, with the different branches of employment law developing all the time, meaning that engaging specialist solicitors to help you stay up to date will be an important step in keeping your business running smoothly.

That’s why an increasing number of companies are turning to the services of employment lawyers in London – most of whom offer both ad hoc services and annual retainers for employers of different sizes to choose from, across all different sectors and industries. Here’s how to know which is right for you…

What Are Ad Hoc Legal Support Services?

Ad hoc legal services are sought by clients as and when they are needed.

For an employer, this could come in the form of a disagreement between employer and employee, or as a grievance or discrimination complaint that needs sorting. It could also be the need for training, tribunal representation, or advice relating to how to manage a certain employee situation.

Whatever the need may be, ad hoc employment law services are available when required and are usually paid for as time is spent by the adviser working on the matter. How long it takes to complete the case, and the legal costs incurred, will depend on availability, with variable rates based on the nature and complexity of the service required.

The Benefits of an Employment Law Annual Retainer Arrangement

An annual retainer arrangement is a contract that a business enters into with a team of employment lawyers to provide ongoing advice and support for a defined period (usually at least a 12-month period).

The idea and beauty of a retainer is that during the contract term , the client/company can call on the services and support of their employment lawyer as many times as they want to – accessing all services from contract creation to guidance on policies and procedures, to managing discipline, grievance, absence, capability and larger scale projects such as redundancy consultations.

If your business is growing, you have a high turnover of staff, or you want to be able to access timely, reliable and practical employment law advice from lawyers that know and understand your business, then working under an annual retainer grants quick and easy access to all of the services and support you need for a fixed fee, giving you budgeting certainty too.

If you use or anticipate needing to use your employment lawyer fairly regularly, not least in the changing and challenging years ahead, an employment law retainer can often be a more helpful and cost-effective approach than instructing your employment law advisers on an ad-hoc basis.

Choosing the Right Level of Support For Your Business

When deciding which level of legal support you need, the first thing to consider is your business projections for the coming year. If you plan on expanding or making changes which require new contracts, negotiations, and management of employee relations issues then having an annual retainer provides you with comfort that you have access to unlimited legal support as an employer as and when you need it.

Having the ability to use a retainer arrangement when starting to manage an employee situation usually enables the adviser to add more value and work with you early in any situation to construct a process which puts an employer in a better position to defend or manage any claims which may potentially arise.

If, on the other hand, you are a small business with a close-knit team with few issues, you may decide that using ad hoc services when you need them is sufficient for now – keeping your local employment law agency on speed dial for when you need them.

The best place to start is with a consultation call with your chosen employment law provider, to discover more about how they work, their fees, and how they can help you with your employment and employee needs.