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3 Responses to 'I have applied for voluntary redundancy. Firm says I can’t rescind once letter signed, but they can?'

1. JSKingston - June 28th, 2009 at 9:45 am

   While I’m not permitted to directly address the “is it legal” portion of your question, I can direct you to two sites (below) which appear helpful. It appears in the first that there is a proceedure for dealing with such a situation. It may come down to just how LIKELY it would be for the company, which instituted the policy then accepted your application in the first place, to suddenly change course.

   VIPguy’s answer is flawed inasmuch as contract law doesn’t apply all by itself — contracts are subject to laws and regulations, such as those governing voluntary redundancy — and the issue of offer and acceptance is not always clear-cut.

   If the “contract” here is your company’s voluntary redundancy policy, it could be invalid to the extent parts of it contradict regulations. For instance, if a LAW or REGULATION provides that a company is bound by a voluntary redundancy once accepted, a provision in the contract to the contrary, stating the company will NOT be bound, will likely be ineffective. Moreover, one can argue that you never even accepted the terms of the contract, where those terms are defined as including your company’s voluntary redundancy policy.

   I do hope this helps. Being a US attorney admitted only in New York State (as a trial attorney, I believe I’m the counterpart to what you would call a Barrister), I’m not permitted to give legal advice in your jurisdiction. If you cannot find a definitive answer here, a last resort might be to consult a local attorney.

2. Vipguy - June 29th, 2009 at 8:44 am

   I confess to knowing little about Employment law but know a great deal about other areas. I will therefore confine your question in regard to contract law (which is really what the question is about).

   If you make a contract it is legally binding on both sides. In order to have a legally binding contract you must have offer, acceptance and consideration – which in your case you certainly would.

   Therefore once signed and accepted by the other party is also binds them. If they did not comply with the contract they could be sued for breach.

3. What the Heck - July 1st, 2009 at 11:54 am

   Depends what is in your contract or what they have written down in the redundancy terms. If it’s in then it’s up to you to accept or not.

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