Mr Marcelo Narcisco Felicio v Hotrocks Food & Drink Limited — 2022

Employment Judge Chapman KC sat alone on 26 October 2022. The Tribunal first dealt with limitation. It found that the relevant deadline for presenting the claims, after allowing for ACAS early conciliation under s.207B ERA 1996, was 16 April 2021. The ET1 was not presented until 13 May 2021, so the claims were out of time.

The Tribunal rejected the Claimant's case that it was not reasonably practicable to present the claims in time. It found that Mr Marcelo Narcisco Felicio was aware of a potential legal claim by 20 December 2020, had been able to engage with ACAS between late December 2020 and early February 2021, and had not shown that limited English, use of the wrong email address, or an asserted psychological condition prevented timely presentation. No supportive medical evidence was before the Tribunal, and it concluded that the burden on reasonable practicability had not been discharged.

Because the time-limit point was dispositive, the Tribunal held that it had no jurisdiction to consider the claims for unlawful deduction of wages during a notice period, failure to pay outstanding accrued holiday pay, failure to pay a week in hand, and failure to provide a written statement of employment particulars. The Respondent's separate strike-out application under rule 37 was noted, but the Judge said that, if it had been necessary to decide it, the materials available would have allowed the hearing to proceed safely.