Mr N Clarke, counsel For the v Mr B Hodgson, solicitor — 2021

The claimant had been employed as Head Chef from 24 June 2003 until his dismissal on 11 March 2019. The original claim included unfair dismissal, disability discrimination and holiday pay, but the holiday pay claim was withdrawn before this hearing. This was a preliminary hearing on limitation only: whether the unfair dismissal and Equality Act claims were out of time, and if so whether time should be extended.

On the unfair dismissal claim, the tribunal accepted evidence that the claimant had significant mental health difficulties, including panic attacks, poor concentration and difficulty coping with stress, and found that those difficulties affected his ability to obtain advice and start proceedings. It found that he knew about time limits by August 2019 at the latest, but that it was not reasonably practicable to present the claim by the expiry of the primary time limit on 10 June 2019. The claim form, presented on 6 October 2019 after ACAS early conciliation, was found to have been submitted within a reasonable period thereafter under s.111(2) Employment Rights Act 1996.

For the disability discrimination claim, the tribunal applied the just and equitable test under s.123(1) Equality Act 2010 and considered the length and reasons for the delay, prejudice, and potential merits. It held that the same illness-related reasons explained the delay, that the respondent still had records of the dismissal process and identified witnesses, and that the substantive merits could not be determined at that stage. Time was therefore extended and the disability discrimination claim was allowed to proceed. The tribunal noted that a previous deposit order of £250 had been made because of the limitation issue.