Without prejudice means, in general, that the contents of any communications sent by other party in a genuine attempt to try and settle a claim will not be admissible in a court or tribunal.
Marking a communication with the words “without prejudice save as to costs” means that the correspondence cannot be shown to the Court until after the main issue is resolved and a concluded settlement agreement has been reached.
In the context of mediation, “without prejudice” means that the parties are able to propose and explore possible solutions to the dispute under consideration without having to worry that their discussions will in some way be regarded as an admission should the parties not reach an agreement.
Negotiations opened by the employer Your employer will then set out the reasons for the discussion and their proposal for a financial settlement in return for the termination of your employment. They will often then hand you a letter marked 'without prejudice'. The letter will set out the details of their offer.
Without Prejudice Meaning The basic meaning of 'without prejudice' is that statements made in the settlement of an existing dispute cannot be relied upon as evidence against the interests of the relevant party if negotiations fail and the parties then have to formally engage in a dispute resolution procedure.
What does Without prejudice save as to costs mean? A party who engages in negotiations 'without prejudice save as to costs' reserves the right, which he would not otherwise have, to bring those negotiations to the attention of the court on the matter of costs.
``This is effectively shorthand for saying: 'whilst I am trying to reach a settlement with you, I'm not admitting any part of the case or conceding or waiving any arguments or rights - so, my offers to achieve a commercial deal are without prejudice to my primary position that I'm right and you're wrong'.
A without prejudice offer can be used to resolve a legal dispute by enabling parties to make settlement offers without the risk of those offers being used against them in court. This protection encourages parties to engage in genuine negotiations to reach a settlement.
The traditional meaning of 'without prejudice' it is to allow communications between parties without worrying that those communications, like letters or emails, will be used in court against the writer.