Labor law
Employee disputes
Disputes with employees – individual or collective – can pose a serious financial, reputational and organisational risk to employers. We offer comprehensive legal assistance across the entire spectrum of conflicts arising from employment relationships – from prevention, through negotiations, to representation before labour courts of all instances.
We help prepare for disputes and minimise their effects – both through careful preparation of documentation and legal arguments, and through efficient, factual communication with employees and their representatives. We advise employers on how to avoid retaliatory actions, violations of the principle of equal treatment or procedural errors that may determine the outcome of a case.
Risk assessment and dispute prevention
We help assess the risk of a dispute at the stage of the employer’s planned actions – such as changes in employment conditions, termination of contracts, resolution of internal conflicts or disciplinary measures. We analyse the legal and factual situation, formulate recommendations and secure documentation.
Representation in labour courts and before public authoritie
We represent employers in disputes before labour courts – in cases concerning reinstatement, compensation, mobbing, discrimination, as well as claims for unlawful termination of contracts or outstanding benefits. We also appear before the National Labour Inspectorate and other authorities in control and investigation proceedings.
Negotiations and mediation with employees and trade unions
We conduct and support negotiations and mediation with employees and their representatives. We advise on how to conduct dialogue in a constructive manner without jeopardising the employer’s interests.
Disputes with contract and B2B employees
We also represent clients in disputes with persons cooperating on the basis of civil law agreements or B2B contracts, especially in cases involving attempts to establish the existence of an employment relationship, disputes over financial liability or claims for breach of contract.
Experience
Employer in litigation
We have represented clients in a number of employment disputes before the courts. Among other things, we advised a manufacturing company on the strategic assessment of disputes with employees whose employment contracts were terminated individually for reasons attributable to the employer, and we represented a trading company belonging to an international group in connection with the termination of an employee’s employment contract due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Employee in litigation
We represented a member of the management board of a joint-stock company in a dispute concerning the unlawful termination of an employment contract without notice (disciplinary dismissal).
Disputes in regulated sectors
We have conducted disputes for entities in the financial industry, where every HR decision requires precise justification and adequate protection of the company’s interests. Among other things, we represented the Polish branch of a foreign bank in a series of disputes related to the implementation of a deferred bonus system for branch employees, and we represented a Polish bank in a dispute and in concluding a settlement with an employee of the bank’s legal department – a legal adviser. We also represented a Polish bank in a dispute and in concluding a settlement with an employee – a sales representative – in connection with an agency agreement.
Settlements
We have supported entrepreneurs in the process of concluding settlements with employees, both during court proceedings and before they commenced. We have participated in mediations concerning such conflicts.
Reputational risk management and compliance
We have supported clients in the preparation and implementation of anti-mobbing, anti-discrimination and whistleblower protection policies. We help employers to act proactively – not only by responding to disputes, but also by preventing them through appropriate procedures and training.
Experts
