In person For the v Ms A Kent, Solicitor — 2022

The tribunal heard an open preliminary hearing on the claimant's race discrimination and harassment complaints. It held that the complaints relating to January to May 2019 were out of time on the ET1 as presented, because the claimant had been absent from work from May 2019 until her resignation on 14 August 2020 and there was no continuing act through to resignation. The tribunal nevertheless concluded that it was just and equitable to extend time under section 123 of the Equality Act 2010, so the 2019 allegations could proceed.

The tribunal also dealt with the claimant's application to amend. It found that the ET1 was sparse and did not give the respondent fair notice of the allegations, although it accepted the claimant's evidence that she had received legal advice when completing it. Applying the Selkent approach and the later authorities it cited, the tribunal held that the claimant was introducing materially new factual allegations and required amendment.

The amendment was allowed in part and refused in part. Paragraphs 1 to 9 were held to be out of time and not within the tribunal's jurisdiction. Paragraphs 11 to 23, which set out the alleged racist behaviour from January to May 2019, were permitted as necessary detail for the existing claim, and paragraph 26 was also permitted. Paragraphs 24 and 25 were treated as narrative only and were not allowed as the basis of any claim. The decision was confined to limitation and amendment; the merits of the substantive claims were not decided at this stage.