A north-east HR firm has made a key appointment making it one of the biggest employment law teams in Aberdeen.
Empire HR, which has offices in Aberdeen, Glasgow and Inverness, has appointed Jill Turner from Pinsent Masons as a litigation expert, increasing its team of solicitors to eight.
Empire specialises in employment law from an HR perspective, with an expert team made up of 50% fully qualified lawyers and 50% HR experts.
Jill has many years’ experience in law, having previously worked at some of the city’s top legal firms, where she focused on employment law and civil litigation. In her role at Empire, she will offer advice and guidance to businesses to help managers and HR professionals deal with employment matters including performance management, misconduct, grievances, redundancies and absences.
Jill said: “I am looking forward to working closely with businesses to help them keep on top of the latest employment legislation. Employment law addresses the legal rights of both employees and employers and recent legislative changes such as shared parental leave and the judicial clarification in relation to holiday pay which can put an unprepared business at risk.”
Steve Cook, chief executive, Empire, said: “Jill’s expertise fits well with Empire’s litigation group, which is now the second largest employment law team in the city. Our lawyers have come from the top legal firms in Aberdeen including Stronachs, Pinsent Masons, Ledingham Chalmers, Simpson and Marwick and Mackinnons. Their expertise will support businesses in all matters of employment law from advising on parental leave to collective redundancies.
“In order to avoid tribunals, firms must deal with issues promptly and by the letter of the law – and our team of lawyers are at the end of the phone to offer guidance, quickly and accurately.
“Tribunal awards against employers can be substantial with significant costs being incurred by the employer in defending claims that could have been avoided. To protect themselves against needless claims, businesses need to take expert advice to avoid disputes at an early stage.”