is this unfair?

[callumsgran]

DAS are crap, and most don't get the choice of who you want if it's being paid for by your house insurance.

I found a solicitor who was looking forward to taking on my case but i was passed over to DAS.

Wish i hadn't bothered now

[R&J]

DAS are crap, and most don't get the choice of who you want if it's being paid for by your house insurance.

I found a solicitor who was looking forward to taking on my case but i was passed over to DAS.

Wish i hadn't bothered now

 

Under the Access to Justice Act you are entitled to appoint a Solicitor of your choosing.

 

DAS will tell you this is not the case. Their staff will lie to you, misrepresent the law, and try to force you to go with their panel solicitor, because 'the Access to Justice Act does not apply to your case', or words to that effect.

 

The reason they do this is because they get a kick-back from the solicitor (usually about £600) for each claim referred, if it is taken on.

 

Go see a Solicitor of your choosing, get them to do it on a NWNF, but also deal with DAS. Once proceedings are issued (i.e. the ET1 is filed with the Tribunal) DAS are pretty much helpless to make you change solicitor.

 

The main problem is that DAS don't back employment claims, because costs are hardly ever awarded, and thus they cannot recover them from the other side.

 

Obviously they cannot tell you this, so you get a nicey nicey letter from a paralegal or in-house Solicitor, saying that your prospects of success are so low that they cannot take the case.

Edited November 3, 2010 by R&J

[callumsgran]

Cheers R&J, bit late for me now but hey it will help others hopefully

[surreyguy]

Having "been there done that" where self representation at a tribunal is concerned , i just want to point out to others who may be reading that representing either yourself or a friend / relative / other at a tribunal is not as bad as you may think it will be.

 

For those who have the luxury of representation either by way of household insurance legal cover or union legal cover then i would say excellent ! Make full use of the legal experience.

 

But in saying that , we did not have this option available to us in my Partners case but i went it alone and am glad that i did !

 

It was actually no-where near as bad as i thought it would be. There are avenues of free advice which can be used , This site and the excellent posters on it being one which i can recommend and you're local CAB to name just a few.

 

Dont let lack of legal cover frighten you off making or pursuing a claim if you really think that you have been unfairly treated by you're employer.

 

At the end of the day what does it cost you to bring an employer to tribunal ? Very little financially , quite a lot of stress if im honest but worth it at the end of the whole thing.

 

Us personally , we were not happy with the whole idea of having to pay a no win no fee rep 35% of any award. That however if something which only the claimant can decide for themselves.