TUPE is shorthand for the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006.
It protects employees when organisations:
The employees who fall within the scope and any liabilities associated with them transfer automatically from the old employer to the acquiring entity or new service provider.
TUPE can be complex and getting it wrong can be costly. Some of its requirements feel at odds with the culture of many UK organisations and its core concept of transferring employees automatically from one employer to another is often contrary to what US and Canadian organisations expect.
We advise organisations on how to navigate the TUPE minefield. We help them avoid the pitfalls, manage their risk, and reduce their legal and financial exposure.
We also advise on the employment aspects of other corporate transactions, including share sales that do not usually have a TUPE element.
Clients call upon the Fox Williams employment team’s expertise on a wide variety of transactions from multi-jurisdictional deals to UK-only transactions. The team acts for clients across the firm’s different sectors. It is particularly experienced in advising North American clients on the employment aspects of UK acquisitions.
If you require assistance or need advice, please don't hesitate to reach out to the following key contacts:
Advised Volaris Group on the acquisition of Nokia’s video product business to form new operating company Velocix, a leading provider of video streaming technology.
Advised Virtu Financial on UK employment law aspects arising from its $1bn acquisition of agency brokerage ITG and various post-merger matter.
Advised the UK office of a NYSE listed financial services firm on the employment law aspects of the integration of a complementary business.
Advised a leading barristers’ chambers on the TUPE aspects of outsourcing its IT function.
Advised Volaris Group on the acquisitions of Lifecycle Software and MDS Global.
Advised UK Payments Administration on the employment aspects of its acquisition by and its integration into New Payment Systems Operator, now called Pay.UK.
Advised on the sale of Swedish connected car company Springworks AB to Tantalum Corporation.
Advised Total Specific Solutions on the acquisition of Stratec Biomedical, a world-leading partner for fully automated analyser systems.