16
Sep 2015
Challenge to Employment Tribunal Fees Dismissed
In July 2013, fees were introduced into the Employment Tribunal system, requiring a payment of between £160 and £250 for claims to be issued. Further hearing fees were payable and there was provision for other costs during the case as well. This has had a significant impact on the number of claims which have been issued and the Trade Union, Unison, have challenged the introduction of this regime by arguing that it prevents access to justice and is indirectly discriminatory.
Under EU law, Unison argued there should be a right to access an effective remedy which meant that potential claimants should have access to justice. It was argued that the level of fees and the fairly limited fee remission regime would deny proper access to justice.
On this argument, the Court of Appeal concluded that the figures relating to the volume of claims on their own could not amount to justification for abolishing the fees on the basis of them preventing access to justice. Furthermore, there is no analysis of the fee remission scheme which would persuade the Court of Appeal that this was defective and also prevented access to justice.
Unison also argued that a greater proportion of women would have to pay a higher fee in order to issue proceedings, given the types of claims that women, statistically, tended to bring in the Employment Tribunal. The Court of Appeal concluded that the argument was not well made out on the basis of the evidence presented before it and thus, it seems, Employment Tribunal fees are here to stay for now.
It should be noted that the Ministry of Justice is undertaking a review of tribunal fees and a separate enquiry into the effect of fees is being conducted by the Justice Committee. Further findings are awaited from these investigations but, in the meantime, Unison has applied for permission to appeal to the Supreme Court.
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