Our regulatory status, in plain English.
What Kelvin Employment Consulting is. We are an employment-law and HR consultancy providing advice, documents, training and Employment Tribunal support to employers. Representation of parties at Employment Tribunals by consultants is permitted under the Employment Tribunal Procedure Rules.
What we are not. We are not a firm of solicitors, a law firm, or a regulated legal practice. We are not regulated by the Law Society of Scotland, and our consultants are not solicitors or advocates and must not be described as such. Because of this, clients do not receive the regulatory protections that apply when instructing a solicitors' practice — such as the Law Society's compensation arrangements or the statutory complaints regime for solicitors.
Work we always refer to authorised legal professionals. Some legal work is reserved by law to solicitors and advocates, or is otherwise outside our service. We do not carry out: court proceedings (including the Sheriff Court and Court of Session); appeals requiring rights of audience we do not hold; the independent advice and certification an employee must receive before signing a settlement agreement; and any matter outside our competence or professional-indemnity cover. In these situations we will tell you promptly and can refer you to an authorised solicitor or advocate.
Legal privilege. Advice from this consultancy does not attract legal advice privilege in the way that advice from a solicitor does. In some circumstances our correspondence with you could be disclosable in legal proceedings. Where privilege is likely to matter to your situation, we will recommend that a solicitor is instructed.
Who we act for. We provide services to employers only. We do not advise or represent individuals pursuing employment claims.
Insurance. We hold professional-indemnity insurance covering our employment advice and tribunal representation. Details are available on request.
Complaints. If you're unhappy with our service, our complaints procedure is available on request and in your engagement letter. We aim to acknowledge complaints within 5 working days and resolve them within 4 weeks.
Client money. We do not hold client money. Settlement sums are paid directly between the parties.