Mr Farrukh Husain v Croner Group Limited and 1 other — 2024

This was a reserved judgment on cross-applications at a public preliminary hearing, not a final determination of the substantive employment claims. The claimant's pleaded claims, as clarified at an earlier case management hearing, included whistleblowing detriments, direct religion or belief discrimination, discrimination arising from disability, indirect religious discrimination, failure to make reasonable adjustments, harassment related to disability, unauthorised deductions from wages, and automatic unfair dismissal for making a protected disclosure.

The respondents applied to strike out the claimant's claims or, alternatively, for deposit orders. They argued that the claims had no or little reasonable prospects of success and relied on the claimant's post-dismissal conduct in sending documents relating to another employment tribunal case to the solicitor for the claimants in that case. The tribunal did not accept that a fair trial was no longer possible and stated that it was not proportionate to use the tribunal process to punish the claimant for those activities.

On the merits threshold for strike out and deposit orders, the tribunal held that none of the claimant's arguments was so implausible as to justify strike out or a deposit order, or to show that the claims had no or little reasonable prospects of success. It found that the prospects of the claims could not be determined without evidence, including disputed issues about time limits for indirect religious discrimination and causation in relation to the other claims. The respondents' application for strike out and deposit orders was refused.

The claimant also applied to strike out the respondents' response, arguing that the respondents' stated reason for dismissal was not the real reason and that they were motivated by whistleblowing, religious belief, disability, or a combination of those matters. The tribunal held that none of the respondents' defences was so implausible as to justify strike out or to show no or little reasonable prospects of success. The claimant's application was refused, and no remedy or monetary award was made in this judgment.