Waiver
The voluntary relinquishment or abandonment of a known right. In contract law, waiver may prevent a party from insisting on strict performance of a term they have previously chosen not to enforce.
Independent editorial summary — not the official statute text. Read the official version on legislation.gov.uk.
Waiver describes the voluntary giving up of a right that a person is otherwise entitled to exercise. Once a right has been validly waived, the person who held it generally cannot later insist on it, at least in relation to the matter covered by the waiver — the concept prevents a party from blowing hot and cold, first indicating it will not enforce a right and then attempting to rely on it after the other party has acted on that basis.
One of the clearest statutory examples in UK employment law is the settlement agreement. Acas guidance explains that settlement agreements are legally binding contracts which can be used to end the employment relationship on agreed terms, and that their main feature is that they waive an individual's right to make a claim to a court or employment tribunal on the matters that are specifically covered in the agreement. This shows waiver operating as a deliberate, negotiated act — the employee gives up specified legal claims in exchange for agreed terms, typically a payment — rather than an informal or accidental abandonment of rights, underlining why such agreements are subject to particular formal requirements before they take effect.
Example
An employee who signs a settlement agreement with their employer typically waives their right to bring an employment tribunal claim on the matters covered by the agreement, in exchange for an agreed settlement payment.
Related terms
Official sources
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