Extended time for lodging tribunal

Peanutmac30

Can anyone tell me under what circumstances an employment tribunal might consider a late application?

Dismissal date was September 2012, but still haven't had a formal resolution to the appeal against dismissal, nor the grievance raised. Would a tribunal extend in these grounds?

UnionGirl

You have 3 months (less one day) from the date of your dismissal to submit an application for a Tribunal.

Even though you are still going through the company's grievance/disciplinary/appeal process, you should still have submitted your application to the Employment Tribunal office.

You would then have had the option to postpone any Tribunals by letting them know that you are still going through the company's procedures.

Peanutmac30

Thanks uniongirl, I feared this would be the case. Would the tribunal allow an extension if the person involved had ill health up until recently so wasn't able to deal with the situation timely?

UnionGirl

Unless your circumstances are exceptional, you will have a real fight on your hands for them to accept a late application:-

The ET has no discretion to accept a late claim other than in the extremely rare circumstance where the claimant can prove it was not possible for them to submit the claim in time. Since the claim form is now available on their website and able to be submitted from it the circumstances where a claimant would be able to prove that it was not possible to submit the claim in time are even further reduced than in the days of the postal submission of the form.

ohreally

In unfair dismissal claims, a tribunal can allow a late claim to proceed if it was not reasonably practicable for the claimant to issue it in time. The tribunal can then extend the time limit to a period that it considers reasonable.

In claims of discrimination on grounds of sex, race, disability, religion or belief, sexual orientation, part-time working or being on a fixed-term contract, a tribunal can extend the time limit if in all the circumstances it considers that it is just and equitable to do so.


In the Afolabi case, 9 years had passed before a complaint was brought - generally timescales are tight though.

Employment tribunal exercising discretion to hear claim after nine year delay

http://lexisweb.co.uk/cases/2003/january/afolabi-v-southwark-london-borough-council

Very much dependant on your complaint.

Takeaway_Addict

ohreally wrote: »

In unfair dismissal claims, a tribunal can allow a late claim to proceed if it was not reasonably practicable for the claimant to issue it in time. The tribunal can then extend the time limit to a period that it considers reasonable.

In claims of discrimination on grounds of sex, race, disability, religion or belief, sexual orientation, part-time working or being on a fixed-term contract, a tribunal can extend the time limit if in all the circumstances it considers that it is just and equitable to do so.


In the Afolabi case, 9 years had passed before a complaint was brought - generally timescales are tight though.


http://lexisweb.co.uk/cases/2003/january/afolabi-v-southwark-london-borough-council

Very much dependant on your complaint.

In lamens terms for me why was it allowed so long after? thanks

ohreally

Mr Afolabi was granted access to his personnel file, the contents of which caused him to believe he had been the victim of race discrimination. Mr Afolabi took a discrimination claim against his employer who resisted it on the basis that the claim was out of time. Subsequently, the employer complained that the subject matter of the claim had occurred nine years earlier.
The tribunal allowed Mr Afolabis claim to proceed. On appeal the court of appeal noted that the tribunal had a discretion to extend the time limit, and that this discretion was not in itself time-barred. This meant that the tribunal could, where the circumstances demanded it, extend the time limit even by such an exceptionally long period.

ValHaller

ohreally wrote: »

Mr Afolabi was granted access to his personnel file, the contents of which caused him to believe he had been the victim of race discrimination. Mr Afolabi took a discrimination claim against his employer who resisted it on the basis that the claim was out of time. Subsequently, the employer complained that the subject matter of the claim had occurred nine years earlier.
The tribunal allowed Mr Afolabis claim to proceed. On appeal the court of appeal noted that the tribunal had a discretion to extend the time limit, and that this discretion was not in itself time-barred. This meant that the tribunal could, where the circumstances demanded it, extend the time limit even by such an exceptionally long period.

Reading between the lines, the delay was from the events taken to tribunal to MrAfolabis having access to his personnel file. I am assuming that he was within time from the point of reading the file.

ohreally

Some background here...http://www.workplacelaw.net/content/3467

The Employment Tribunal decided that, although the second complaint had been presented long after the expiry of the three-month time limit, it was just and equitable to consider it and went on to find that the council had unlawfully discriminated against the applicant