News

NCVO launches its “Rebalancing the Relationship” report on charities and collaborative working

The report is a thought-provoking read for any charities and social enterprises who work in collaboration (or are thinking about it). In February, NCVO published its report on “Rebalancing the Relationship”. The report is the conclusion of a two year project looking at how charities can successfully work together in partnership to deliver greater impact …
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Employees working abroad: your complete guide

During the Covid-19 pandemic, a number of UK employers have permitted employees to work in other jurisdictions – but what are the legal and practical considerations for employers? In the “new normal”, many UK companies have being dealing with requests from employees to work abroad, in some cases because people have been stranded abroad due …
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Employment Insight: can employers require their employees to be vaccinated against Covid-19?

In the wake of the commencement of the government’s vaccination programme, aimed at immunising the majority of the UK population against the Covid-19 virus, several UK employers have stated that they will be setting up systems to track which of their staff have received the vaccine.  Others have gone a step further, and have announced …
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Bates Wells wins ground-breaking worker status case against Uber in the Supreme Court

The unanimous and emphatic victory for the drivers will have significant implications for an estimated 5.5 million individuals engaged in ‘gig’ work.   Following a five year legal battle, Bates Wells’ Paul Jennings and Rachel Mathieson successfully represented the lead claimants, James Farrar and Yaseen Aslam, in the first Supreme Court case concerning the status …
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Uber CoA case: Paul Jennings and Rachel Mathieson write for The Times

Paul Jennings and Rachel Mathieson from our Employment team have written an opinion piece for Times Law setting out why they believe workers’ rights should not be overlooked by gig employers. Paul and Rachel are representing Claimants James Farrar and Yaseen Aslam in their case against Uber before the Court of Appeal on the 30th …
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Bates Wells represent Uber drivers in landmark case in the Court of Appeal

Ground-breaking gig economy case set to have a significant impact on the rights of 2.8 million On 30 and 31 October London law firm, Bates Wells, will represent the lead Claimants in their landmark Court of Appeal (CoA) case against global transportation provider, Uber. The CoA hearing, follows last year’s ruling by the Employment Appeal …
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Landmark judgment on worker status confirms another huge success for Bates Wells’ Employment team

In November 2017, the Employment Appeal Tribunal upheld the Employment Tribunal’s decision that the Claimants in this case, all of whom are current or former London-based Uber drivers, were “workers” and consequently entitled to basic protections such as national minimum wage and holiday pay. Uber’s appeal against this decision was heard in the Court of …
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Bates Wells wins landmark Court of Appeal case against Uber

Today Uber lost its appeal to the Court of Appeal, in a landmark case concerning the employment rights of an estimated 45,000 drivers across London. More broadly, this ruling could affect over 2.8 million people engaged within the gig economy. The Court of Appeal’s decision upholds two earlier legal Judgments and has potentially significant implications …
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Bates Wells is listed in the Escape 100 for a second year running

The Escape 100 list represents the purposeful organisations that are leading the way in putting their people and our planet on a par with profit. Escape the City lists the best organisations to work for in 2021, identified using 6 key criteria: impact, mission, people, planet, innovation and B Corp. Over 15,000 companies were nominated, …
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Accuracy is crucial for drafters of legacies when naming charities – we explain why in Charity Finance.

Leticia Jennings, partner, reviews a recent dispute regarding misnamed charities in an ambiguous will. What are the lessons learned and what should you do if your charity is contacted? This article by Leticia Jennings was featured in the March 2021 issue of Charity Finance following a High Court judgment concerning an ambiguous will in which …
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Bates Wells is the first law firm to adopt the Halo Code

The Halo Code explicitly protects employees who come to work with natural hair and protective hairstyles associated with their racial, ethnic, and cultural identities. Hair discrimination continues to be a source of racial injustice with serious consequences for Black people in the UK. By adopting the Halo Code, we are proactively taking a stand to …
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Employers must ‘tread extremely carefully’ when hiring EU nationals before 30th June 2021

As it stands, citizens of the EU, EEA and Switzerland who are working in the UK are eligible to apply for the EU Settlement Scheme (EUSS). This allows workers and their families to continue living in the UK after 30th June 2021 – when the scheme ends.
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