Employment & Labour Lawyers for Australian Employers & Employees

For straightforward situations (for example a standard award-based casual contract for a single employee), a Lawpath template plus the Essentials Plan may be enough. For senior roles with restraint clauses, IP assignments, equity terms, or when you’re dealing with a termination, dispute, or restructure, get a lawyer – the cost of a Fair Work claim is many times higher than a $1,400 contract draft. And if you’re an employee or contractor who’s been dismissed, underpaid, or handed a contract you don’t understand, a lawyer can quickly tell you whether you have a claim worth pursuing.

Hourly rates from boutique employment firms typically run $500–$650/hour. Lawpath uses fixed-price quotes per matter – most contract drafts are $1,400–$1,800, termination advice $800–$1,200, and full HR policy suites $2,500–$3,500 (all plus GST). You’ll see the quote before any work starts.

We act on unfair dismissal and general protections matters – from advice and a demand letter through to negotiation and conciliation at the Fair Work Commission – for both employees bringing a claim and employers responding to one. We generally do not run formal Fair Work Commission hearings or Federal Court proceedings; if a matter heads that way we refer you to a litigation specialist. Most matters we handle resolve before they get there.

Full-time and part-time employees accrue paid annual leave, personal leave, and notice entitlements. Casual employees receive a 25% casual loading instead, no paid leave, and shift-by-shift engagement (since 26 February 2025, an eligible casual can notify their employer to convert to permanent employment under the employee choice pathway – after 6 months, or 12 months for a small business employer). The right form depends on the work pattern – not on what’s convenient. Classification is the employer’s biggest hidden liability – get it wrong, and you’re exposed to sham-contracting penalties, super shortfalls and back-pay orders. For a worker wrongly treated as a contractor, it’s a right to pursue entitlements (leave, super, redundancy) you were denied. Whichever side you’re on, we’ll run the multi-factor test against the actual working arrangement and tell you where you stand.

There are three main routes: (1) genuine redundancy with proper consultation and a redeployment check, (2) performance-based dismissal after warnings and a reasonable improvement opportunity, and (3) summary dismissal for serious misconduct (rare; needs clear evidence). Each route has notice, severance, and documentation rules. A 30-minute conversation with an employment lawyer before you act usually saves the cost of a Fair Work claim later.

Once you hire your first employee you should have at minimum: an employment contract, a workplace policy covering anti-discrimination and workplace health & safety, and a written induction process. As you grow past 5-10 employees, a full employee handbook (covering leave, performance management, IT use, social media, and grievance) becomes essential — both for compliance and to avoid he-said/she-said disputes.

The NES are 11 minimum entitlements that apply to all employees in the Australian national workplace relations system — including maximum weekly hours, requests for flexible working, parental leave, annual leave, personal/carer’s leave, compassionate leave, family and domestic violence leave, community service leave, long service leave, public holidays, notice of termination and redundancy pay, and the Fair Work Information Statement. Your employment contract must meet or exceed these — it can’t reduce them.

Most employers receive 2-3 fixed-price quotes within 1 business day of submitting the form. Urgent matters (e.g. termination meetings tomorrow) can often be expedited — let us know in the form and we’ll prioritise.