Ms F Williams v NFU Mutual Service Company Limited — 2020

The case was listed for a preliminary hearing at Manchester before Employment Judge Whittaker on 14 October 2020. The claimant, Ms F Williams, did not attend. The respondent’s representative said the claimant had been sent notice of the hearing, had acknowledged receipt of the 19 May 2020 notice, and had been given dial-in details for the telephone hearing.

Before the hearing, the respondent sent the claimant a draft agenda and asked her to add her views so that a final agenda could be provided to the tribunal. The tribunal found that the claimant did not respond to those emails, did not complete an agenda, and did not make any attempt to participate in the case management process. The tribunal also recorded that the claimant had been told the named respondent should be the recognised legal body that employed her, and no response was received to that point either.

By 10:05am the claimant had not joined the hearing. The respondent’s representative telephoned the number on the claim form, reached voicemail, and left a message asking her to join promptly. By 10:20am she still had not joined. The tribunal considered Rule 37 of the Employment Tribunal (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2013 and concluded that the claimant had conducted the proceedings in an entirely unreasonable manner and had failed to actively pursue claims issued in September 2019.

The tribunal therefore struck out and dismissed the claims. No merits findings were made on the underlying allegations, and no remedy was awarded.