Mr M Al-Hussaini v Unite the Union — 2023

The claim form was presented on 23 January 2020 and made complaints of discrimination on grounds of race and religion or belief. The claim arose from events between July 2019 and January 2020. Hearings listed for September 2020 and September 2021 were postponed on grounds of the Claimant's ill health, and the claim was stayed until 31 January 2022.

The Respondent applied to strike out the claim on 27 September 2022. The Claimant's solicitors accepted that the claim had not been actively pursued and provided medical evidence stating that the Claimant was not fit to attend a hearing and was very unlikely to improve sufficiently in the future to make decisions about the case and give clear instructions.

The Tribunal found that the claim had not been actively pursued and that a fair hearing was no longer possible. It noted the time elapsed since the 2019 events, the likely further delay before any hearing, the likely effect on witness recollections, and the medical evidence about the Claimant's ability to participate. Exercising its discretion, the Tribunal struck out the claim while noting that this would deprive the Claimant of a trial on the merits.