How to get more work as an employment barrister.
Employment is one of the few areas where lay clients, small employers and solicitors all instruct counsel directly, which means three separate pipelines are available to a practitioner willing to build them.
The employment tribunal is the most accessible court in the jurisdiction for a lay client, and that is precisely why it produces so much direct access work. There are no costs shifting in the ordinary case, claimants frequently act in person, and small employers face a claim without an in-house lawyer. All three groups reach the point of realising they need an advocate for the hearing and no solicitor on the record.
Alongside that sits the professional pipeline. Employment solicitors instruct counsel for preliminary hearings, for multi-day final hearings, for EAT appeals and for advice on merits and quantum. Firms that lack advocacy capacity will use a barrister as a solicitor agent repeatedly once they trust the service. That work is lower margin per hearing but far more predictable.
Clerk&Counsel markets for both. We are a clerking agency, not a chambers, and we place employment practitioners with lay clients, respondent employers and instructing firms across England and Wales. Instructions run directly between you and the client, with no rent and no marketing charge.
Three sources of employment instructions.
- Claimants in person facing a preliminary or final hearing in unfair dismissal, discrimination or wages claims.
- Small and medium employers responding to a claim without in-house counsel or an employment retainer.
- Solicitor firms instructing counsel for tribunal advocacy, EAT appeals, advice on merits and settlement.
- HR consultancies and employee relations advisers who need an advocate but cannot provide one.
- Trade union and staff association referrals for members with a tribunal claim.
- Independent workplace investigations and grievance appeals, which sit alongside tribunal advocacy well.
What employment clients actually search for.
Lay clients do not search for counsel by chambers name. They search for employment barrister, barrister for employment tribunal, unfair dismissal barrister, discrimination barrister, and increasingly for the city they are in because they want somebody who knows the local tribunal. Being present in those results, with a page that explains the fee basis in plain terms, is what generates the call.
Specificity converts better than breadth. A practitioner visibly described as taking discrimination claims, whistleblowing detriment, or TUPE and redundancy disputes will convert a matching enquiry far more reliably than a generalist description. Employment clients believe, correctly, that the subject matter is technical.
Location matters more than it should. Remote hearings are now routine but clients still want a practitioner who has appeared at their regional tribunal and knows the listing practice. Naming the tribunals you cover is worth doing.
Pricing tribunal work so clients say yes.
Fixed stage fees work best in employment because the procedural stages are so well defined. A fee for a preliminary hearing, a fee for a merits hearing day with a refresher, a fee for a written advice on merits and quantum, and a fee for drafting or amending the ET1 or ET3 covers the vast majority of instructions.
Respondent employers think in terms of risk, not hours. An advice that quantifies exposure and sets out a settlement range is frequently the most valuable single document in the case, and it is billable at a proper rate because it drives a commercial decision.
Because costs orders are rare in the tribunal, private paying clients are highly fee sensitive. Staged payment in advance of each stage protects you and makes the total feel manageable to the client. Be clear in writing that a settled case does not automatically refund a fee for preparation already done.
Working with the panel.
We take the enquiry, confirm the hearing date, the tribunal, the type of claim and the fee basis, and pass a written outline to a panel member who fits. You accept or decline. Nothing is allocated to you without your agreement.
For solicitor instructed work we handle the fee note traffic and chase the papers, which removes the two administrative tasks that most often go unattended when a practitioner is in tribunal all week.
Volume in employment is steady across the year rather than seasonal, and it is one of the strongest categories on the panel for both claimant and respondent work.
Specialist areas within this practice.
- Employment barristers
Our employment practice hub for clients and firms.
- Employment and discrimination barristers
Discrimination and equal pay advocacy.
- Barrister lead generation
How we generate and qualify enquiries.
- Independent workplace investigations
Investigation work that sits alongside tribunal practice.
Employment practitioner with capacity to fill?
Tell us your year of call, the tribunals you cover and whether you act for claimants, respondents or both. A clerk will come back within two working days.
Common questions.
Is there enough direct access work in employment?
Yes. The employment tribunal produces more litigants in person than any other jurisdiction, and small employers frequently face claims with no solicitor engaged. Both groups are willing to pay privately for an advocate at the hearing, which makes employment one of the strongest categories for public access instructions.
Should I act for claimants, respondents or both?
Most practitioners take both and it broadens the pipeline considerably. Some prefer to be seen as a claimant or respondent specialist for referral reasons. Either is workable, but tell your clerk which you prefer so enquiries are matched correctly.
What do employment barristers charge for a tribunal day?
Fees vary widely with call, complexity and location. A one day merits hearing is typically quoted as a fixed brief fee with a refresher for each additional day, and preliminary hearings and case management discussions are quoted separately. Quote in writing, in stages, and take payment before each stage.
Do I need litigation authorisation for tribunal work?
No. Employment tribunal proceedings are not litigation within the meaning of the BSB rules in the same way as civil claims, so an unauthorised barrister can do far more in the tribunal than in the County Court. Take advice on the boundary if you also handle related civil claims.
Can Clerk&Counsel supply solicitor instructed work as well?
Yes. We market to firms that need advocacy capacity and place counsel as solicitor agents and as instructed counsel for hearings, appeals and advice.
What areas of employment law are most in demand?
Unfair dismissal, discrimination across all protected characteristics, whistleblowing detriment, wages and holiday pay claims, TUPE and redundancy disputes, and increasingly hybrid claims combining discrimination with a contractual or restraint of trade element.