G Ogunbayo v Commissioners for HM Revenue & Customs — 2025

The tribunal considered the respondent's application to strike out the claim on the papers. The claimant had been given until 5 July 2025 to object to the proposed strike out or request a hearing; he emailed the tribunal on 4 July 2025 without an attachment, and the attachment submitted on 8 July 2025 was considered before judgment. He did not request a hearing.

The tribunal found from papers relating to a 2016 claim that the claimant was seeking to raise the same matters as in that earlier claim, except that the earlier claim had initially included unfair dismissal, race discrimination and sex discrimination, while the present claim alleged race discrimination only. The earlier sex discrimination complaint had been dismissed following withdrawal, the earlier claim had been struck out in its entirety, reconsideration had been refused, and the Employment Appeal Tribunal had dismissed the appeal as having no reasonable prospect of success.

Applying the principle that the same matter cannot be litigated twice, described as cause of action estoppel, the tribunal concluded that the present claim was very obviously vexatious and plainly had no reasonable prospect of success. It found that strike out was appropriate having regard to the overriding objective, and granted the respondent's application.