7 December 2022: A Settlement Agreement is an agreement that brings to an end all and any statutory or other claims arising out of your employment or its termination.

There are several requirements necessary for a Settlement Agreement to binding, including the need to get independent legal advice on it before you enter into it, and the need for the agreement to list out all statutory claims that are being settled. For more information on settlement agreements, follow this link.

Another means of settling a claim is using an ACAS COT3 Agreement (using the government ACAS mediation service). COT3 agreements can be wider in scope, and you don’t need legal advice to conclude one.

In Arvunescu v Quick Release Ltd, the Court of Appeal considered whether a sufficiently widely drafted COT3 agreement could prevent a subsequent claim of victimisation against the same employer.

Mr Arvunescu settled a race discrimination claim using a COT3 agreement, but a couple of months later he issued a second claim of unlawful victimisation when he applied for another job with the same company shortly before the COT3 agreement was concluded.

The Court of Appeal agreed that his victimisation claim had also been settled, even though it was not part of his Tribunal claim.

The intention of the COT3 was to settle ALL claims connected to his employment which existed at the time of the settlement agreement.

Therefore, if you are thinking about settling a first claim but considering bringing a second claim against the same employer, be extremely careful and ensure if possible that there is a carve-out of any other claims that you might still wish to pursue (and which often includes personal injury claims and pension related claims).

James Carmody, Reculver Solicitors, 7 December 2022