About Marianne
Marianne is a Consultant to our Employment team, which is led by Darren Tibble.
Having qualified as a Solicitor in 1999, Marianne is highly knowledgeable and experienced in both contentious and non-contentious Employment Law.
Marianne’s qualifications include an LLB in Law and she has completed the Legal Practice Course, and she is a member of Employment Lawyers Association.
Marianne’s specialisms include:
- Acting for both employees and employers in Employment Tribunal proceedings, including unfair dismissal, discrimination, whistleblowing and TUPE
- Navigating both employees and employers through a range of difficult workplace disputes, including performance and capability processes, absence management and grievances
- Advising employers on collective redundancy processes
- Advising employers on trade union issues
- Advising and drafting of employment contracts and staff handbooks
- Advising, drafting and negotiating of settlement agreements
- Supporting commercial/corporate colleagues on corporate transactions
A Successful Day
Marianne understands that employment disputes can cause considerable disruption and stress for both the employer and employee.
“If I manage to alleviate these for my clients it has been a successful day. When I receive feedback from my client along these lines, I know I have made a difference.”
Supporting Clients
Marianne tailors her approach to each individual client’s needs, which allows her to support them in the best way.
“I think it is important to know your client, understand what they wish to achieve in any given situation and focus attention on that outcome.
Clients appreciate a speedy and professional, pragmatic response and, more often than not, plain speaking.”
Rewarding Elements
For Marianne, the most rewarding part of her role is knowing that she has made a difference to her client.
A Historical Trial That Marianne Would Have Liked To Have Attended
Marianne would have been fascinated to attend the case of Gill and Coote v El Vino Co Ltd, heard at the Court of Appeal in 1982.
Marianne says:
“Tess Gill (a Solicitor) and Anna Coote (a Journalist) brought a case against El Vino objecting to their policy of refusing to serve women at the bar, instead requiring them to order by table service in a back room, which they asserted breached the Sex Discrimination Act 1975.
They lost the case as it was decided that the women had not suffered any unfavourable treatment, but they appealed this as they rejected El Vino's assertion that the policy was beneficial to women, protecting them from "pushing and jostling" at the bar.
The Court of Appeal agreed with Gill and Coote as it denied women a choice of where to be served and prevented them from mixing with men in the bar where they might pick up information from other journalists and lawyers.
The case is widely considered a landmark decision in the furtherance of women's rights, in particular, where equality is denied on the grounds of perceived courtesy.”