Ian McFarland

Partner

Practice areas

• Employment law

Practice notes

Ian is a Partner in our Belfast Employment Law team. He has over 10 years of knowledge and expertise in employment law, particularly in complex matters for high-profile clients. Ian's work since the onset the pandemic has been varied and often urgent, including significant collective redundancy exercises (affecting 500+ employees) and all associated issues, advice in relation to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and hybrid/home working arrangements.

Ian’s experience includes,

- Advising and representing clients of all types and sizes, including multi-nationals, large companies, SMEs, family businesses, partnerships, sole traders, the public sector, regulatory bodies and charities.

- Regular advice, assistance and representation in Industrial and Fair Employment Tribunal proceedings, to include advocacy. For instance, Ian was the sole representative in a recent Tribunal case involving the defence of complex claims of disability discrimination and unfair dismissal, received from a Claimant with capacity issues who was seeking various adjustments (including the appointment of a registered intermediary, which is a developing concept in NI employment law).

- Advice in all aspects of employment law and related areas, including the expected and unexpected. By way of non-exhaustive example, this includes redundancy (individual and collective), disciplinary and grievance processes, long term ill-health and disability issues, high level contracts, policies and procedures, dismissal procedures and exits (to include Compromise Agreements), data protection and support in relation to commercial transactions (due diligence, TUPE, warranties, indemnities, service agreements and consultancy arrangements).

- Representation and advice on proceedings in the High Court and Court of Appeal.

'Ian McFarland is a pleasure to work with. He is highly organised, very responsive, and excellent at getting to the essential aspects of a case.’ - The Legal 500