Mrs E A Merrigan v Mrs Patricia Bowey — 2023

On 26 April 2023 Employment Judge R Powell determined the respondent's reconsideration application on the papers, without objection from the claimant. The application concerned the rejection of the respondent's ET3 as out of time. The judgment records that the respondent had sought an extension, was affected by ill health during the relevant period, and relied on her daughter and solicitors. The ET3 was sent on Monday 13 February 2023 after an extension to Friday 10 February 2023 had already been granted, so it was treated as one working day late.

In deciding whether to grant reconsideration, the tribunal took into account the respondent's inexperience, substantial ill health, her reliance on her daughter, the potential merits of the defence, and that another judge had already decided it was not appropriate to enter default judgment on liability. The judge noted that the proposed defence was weak on the procedural fairness of the admitted dismissal but had substance in relation to the claims of disability discrimination and potential contributory fault for remedy purposes under sections 119 to 123 of the Employment Rights Act 1996.

The tribunal concluded that the interests of justice required the respondent to be allowed to defend the claim. It therefore allowed the reconsideration application, revoked the earlier decision and extended the time for presentation of the response to 13 February 2023. The response was then treated as received in time and accepted by the Employment Tribunal. This judgment did not determine liability on the substantive claims.