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Software Box Ltd v Gannon
In this case, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (“EAT”) considered whether an Employment Judge had make a mistake in allowing a time extension for an unfair dismissal claim to be brought out of time after an initial claim, that had been brought in time, had been rejected for non-payment of the issue fee.
The Claimant suffered from alcohol dependency, anxiety and depression and sought to issue a claim for unfair dismissal. The Claimant completed the ET1, which she submitted together with an application for remission of fees. The Claimant was subsequently refused remission, but didn't learn about the refusal until after the date for payment had passed, which was due to a series of administrative errors. Consequently, this meant that the Claimant’s ET1 had been rejected. As soon as she was made aware, she borrowed the fee and presented a further ET1 which was now out of time.
Counsel for the Respondent contended that it was not open to the employment tribunal to find that it had not been reasonably practicable for the Claimant to present her complaint in time because she had previously done exactly that.
The EAT found that the Employment Judge had not correctly considered the question of whether it had been practicable for the Claimant to present the particular claim - i.e. her second claim - in time, so the case was remitted to the original tribunal to decide this point.
In Practice
Employment Associate Paul Burton says, "This case is another example of the strict time limits and rules involving tribunal claims which are often seen as being harsh on a Claimant. The administrative errors were down to the tribunal and therefore it does seem unfair that the Claimant loses out, when she has done everything she could. However, from the employer’s point of view, it demonstrates that, when facing a tribunal claim, it should always look at the dates involved in lodging the claim as there may be a technical argument that can be used to get the case struck out at an early stage in the proceedings."
At Frettens, all of our solicitors offer a free initial meeting or chat on the phone to answer your questions. If this article raises issues for you or your business, please call us on 01202 499255 and Kate or Paul will be happy to discuss it with you.
