From the beginning of this week, it has been confirmed that there will be no in-person Employment Tribunal (ET) hearings in England, Scotland and Wales as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
This news will mean that all in-person hearings will be changed to case management hearings which will take place via telephone or other electronic means.
Statement:
“In view of the rapidly changing circumstances created by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Presidents of the Employment Tribunals in England & Wales and in Scotland have directed that from Monday 23 March 2020 all in-person hearings (hearings where the parties are expected to be in attendance at a tribunal hearing centre) listed to commence on or before Friday 26th June 2020, will be converted to a case management hearing by telephone or other electronic means which will take place (unless parties are advised otherwise) on the first day allocated for the hearing.
“This will provide an opportunity to discuss how best to proceed in the light of the Presidential Guidance dated 18 March 2020, unless in the individual case the President, a Regional Employment Judge or the Vice-President directs otherwise.
“If the case is set down for more than one day then parties should proceed on the basis that the remainder of the days fixed have been cancelled.
“For the avoidance of doubt, this direction also applies to any hearing that is already in progress on Monday 23 March 2020 and, if not already addressed before then, the parties may assume that the hearing on that day is converted to a case management hearing of the kind referred to above. In person hearings listed to commence on or after 29th June 2020 will remain listed, in the meantime, and will be subject to further direction in due course. The parties remain free to make any application to the Tribunal.”
“This Direction will be subject to ongoing review and in particular will be reviewed on 29th April 2020 and 29th May 2020 to take into account the circumstances as they then stand in connection with the Covid-19 pandemic.”
No in-person ET hearings – what does this mean?
The statement above means the following:
- Case hearings that are listed to commence on or before 26th June 2020, will be converted to a case management hearing which will be conducted remotely via telephone or other electronic methods, for example Skype.
- In-person hearings listed to commence on or after 29th June 2020 will remain listed, in the meantime, and will be subject to further direction in due course. However, applications can still be made to the Tribunal.
- For hearings listed for more than one day, the case management hearing will take place on the first day allocated for the hearing, unless parties are advised otherwise. All subsequent days listed for the hearing are cancelled.
- Any ET hearings already in progress before Monday 23rd March (in which the case has not been completed) will be converted to a case management hearing via telephone or other electronic means.
- This direction will be subject to on-going review and in particular will be reviewed on 29th April 2020 and 29th May 2020 to take into account the circumstances as they then stand in connection with the Covid-19 pandemic.
It is worth noting that the above announcement could mean that parties and their legal representatives may decide to try and postpone or adjourn their cases until a later date.
However, whether a case will be postponed or adjourned will be dependent on the circumstances of the case, for example how many days a hearing is listed for. Parties are expected to co-operate with each other and properly explore whether a case can be conducted with all parties attending remotely.
Comment
The announcement of no in-person hearings raises the question of how Judges will manage each ET case and this will most likely be decided on a case by case basis, and based on the specific circumstances.
However, in the main, the case management hearings could be used to give greater definition in relation to what the dispute is, give clarity as to the employment law relevant to the case, explore whether the hearing can take place remotely and review whether the case of relevance could be resolved via alternative dispute resolution.
Those with on-going ET cases should continue to prepare for their hearing as if the hearing is going ahead, for example by continuing to comply with case management timetables and deadlines.
Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) and London (Central) Employment Tribunal closures
Yesterday, it was also confirmed by the President of the Employment Appeal Tribunal that due to the coronavirus outbreak, that no further EAT hearings – in-person, by phone or by other electronic means – would be taking place from today until Wednesday 15th April 2020.
Furthermore, it has been announced today that all hearings at London Central ET have also been postponed with no in-person hearings taking place before the end of June. With regards to hearings being held remotely, they may resume on Monday 30th March, however this is subject to change.
How we can help
For further information on the topics covered in this article, please contact a member of our Employment Law team in Derby, Leicester or Nottingham on 0800 024 1976 or via our online form.
The ET are in the process of working through the existing list of hearings and the team will be in touch with any clients with existing ET cases with an update on their individual cases once further information is received.