Ms K Steele v Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust — 2019

On 29 August 2019 at Manchester, Regional Employment Judge Parkin heard a preliminary issue concerning Ms K Steele's ET1, which had presented claims of unfair dismissal, protected disclosure detriment, and disability discrimination arising out of employment that ended on 6 November 2018. The respondent argued that the claims were out of time and, in any event, had been compromised by a settlement reached through ACAS.

The tribunal found that ACAS conciliator Mr Simon Ball conveyed a revised settlement offer on 3 July 2019. The revised proposal removed an earlier proposed meeting with Trust management and offered to write off about ?2,700 said to be owed by Ms Steele. Ms Steele replied the same day, 'I'll accept that Simon,' and said she wanted to be done with it. The tribunal treated that email as an unequivocal acceptance, and found that Mr Ball later reported acceptance to the respondent on 8 July 2019, creating a binding agreement.

Ms Steele argued that she was not in a proper mental condition or frame of mind to agree on 3 July 2019, and the tribunal accepted that she had mental health difficulties and a potential autism spectrum diagnosis. It nevertheless found that her email showed insight and a clear understanding of the settlement, and that she acted carefully and rationally. The tribunal applied section 203 Employment Rights Act 1996, section 144 Equality Act 2010, and the guidance in Allma Construction Ltd v Bonner on settlement through ACAS.

Because the tribunal found the parties had reached a binding settlement, it held that it had no jurisdiction to proceed with the claims in the ET1 and dismissed the unfair dismissal, protected disclosure, and disability discrimination claims for lack of jurisdiction. No tribunal remedy was awarded; the monetary figures in the correspondence were part of the compromise terms, not a judgment award.