Being offered a settlement agreement can be a real shock (or no surprise), but either way, you should ensure the terms and compensation on offer are reasonable. We can carry out a settlement agreement negotiation where we don’t just review the terms of the agreement, we can negotiate an increase to the employer’s offer. We set out below an example where a client came to us with a settlement agreement and we negotiated a significant uplift to the compensation on offer.
When someone comes to us with a settlement agreement, we ensure that the employer pays for our advice on the terms and effect of the agreement. If we are to negotiate more money, we guarantee that there is nothing to pay unless we get you a better deal (so more money).
Settlement Agreement Negotiation – SA
We were approached by SA who had been presented with a settlement agreement by his employer. SA was surprised by this, but his employer had convinced him that nothing untoward was happening and that taking their offer was the best way forward.
SA came to us to sign off the settlement agreement so he could exit the business and move forward.
Our Instruction
After talking with SA and reviewing his situation, we could see that the offer was subpar. We always try and get our clients the best deal and want to make sure they have a strong financial buffer when looking for a new job. We explained the issues we identified and recommended a settlement agreement negotiation take place. Knowing how to negotiate a settlement agreement is a specialist skill and can ensure you leave with more tax free compensation, a reference and your reputation intact. We also make sure there are no barriers in place to getting a new job.
As SA came to us with a settlement agreement, we were able to offer his a risk free approach to us carrying out the settlement agreement negotiation. In short, the terms of our instruction were that SA would only incur legal fees if we negotiated more money for him. If we were not able to get him a better deal, then there would be no charge for our services.
The Negotiation
After reviewing the background in more detail and arming ourselves with the best points, we approached SA’s employer on a without prejudice basis. We deployed some of our tried and tested tactics to initiate a negotiation. This prompted several rounds of negotiations which were conducted on SA’s behalf. SA did not have to be involved in the negotiations (we did all the work for him), but we kept him updated throughout.
The result of the negotiations were a much higher compensation payment for SA.
The Outcome
After securing a better offer for SA, we reviewed his settlement agreement. We made sure the settlement agreement terms were appropriate and included a reference and an assurance that both sides would achieve a clean break and not make derogatory comments about each other. We made sure there were no clauses in the agreement that would hinder SA going forward.
As a result of working with us, SA was able to secure a higher financial offer and achieved what we were aiming for, a clean break, with tax free compensation, a reference, and his reputation intact. Throughout this process, we kept SA updated on progress and he did not have the stress of worrying about a large legal bill, as we had already agreed that he would only be charged if we negotiated him more money.
SA situation highlights the importance of working with a suitable professional to improve your position. We would like to thank SA for his positive review (see below) and allowing us to publish his story.
