Contract termination without honouring notice period

[WTFH]

This has happened to me

Client terminated my contract without the 4 week notice period on a suspicion which is now universally agreed to be false

You say it is "universally agreed to be false" Do you have that in writing from the client or agent? If it's not in writing, then it's not universally agreed by them, just your opinion.

I took the umbrella company to court and they said because they were not the ones to terminate I could not argue unfair termination. Agency argued because im not their employee I had no case against them

So basically the notice period means nothing

What do you think?

What did your solicitor say before he started the legal proceedings?
If he was any good he would have pointed out to you that you take one party to court, not two, so having both the umbrella and the agent as defendants would not happen.
Next he would have pointed out that the termination came from the client/agent, not the umbrella, so you wouldn't sue the umbrella for termination.

There's a few holes in your story that could do with clarification. BTW, a good solicitor will cost you £200-500 per hour, and if you've got a solid case they are worth it. (Such as unpaid invoices for time already worked).

As a contractor, if things go bad at a client, I'm more interested in getting a new contract than wasting my time over termination. If I get paid for the work I have done, I'm happy.

[SueEllen]

I don't believe for one minute you took the Umbrella to court as you contract is with the agent, you were still employed busy the Brolly.

The umbrella is the employer in this relationship and the contract should be with them.

However I do agree with you that this didn't go to court and was likely legal opinion.

[SueEllen]

Yep - as long as the client has not clearly discriminated against you in getting rid off you then the notice period is meaningless.

Oh and it's up to you to show the cause was blatant discrimination.

[northernladuk]

Correct. Notice periods are for permies. We've been over this a thousand times.

Look in the welcome/FAQ section. There is a sticky called How to search the forums. If you use the method explained there and search for notice period you will find all the threads on it and the reasons why.

I don't believe for one minute you took the Umbrella to court as you contract is with the agent, you were still employed busy the Brolly.

[bornlivelife]

This has happened to me

Client terminated my contract without the 4 week notice period on a suspicion which is now universally agreed to be false
Agency communicated this termination to me in writing and said no notice will be paid
Umbrella company said although they were my employer and my contract had another month to run, they would not be paying the 4 week notice period

I took the umbrella company to court and they said because they were not the ones to terminate I could not argue unfair termination. Agency argued because im not their employee I had no case against them

So basically the notice period means nothing

What do you think?