Mr Simon Ditchfield v Kenton Black North Ltd — 2021

The claimant withdrew his unfair dismissal claim on 9 February 2021 after he did not attend the remotely listed final hearing. The respondent then applied for costs under rules 75 and 76 of the Employment Tribunals (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2013, contending that the claimant had acted vexatiously or otherwise unreasonably in the way he conducted the proceedings.

Employment Judge Ord found that the claimant's last-minute withdrawal, made after he had been sent the CVP link on the morning of the hearing, was unreasonable in the circumstances. The tribunal rejected the claimant's explanation that he had internet difficulties and found that he could have contacted the tribunal before 10.00 or explained any difficulty when he was able to send emails that morning. It also found that, despite understanding disclosure and bundle preparation, the claimant had made a widely drawn Data Subject Access Request only about three weeks before the hearing for a large volume of irrelevant information, which the tribunal treated as part of the employment tribunal proceedings and as an abuse of process.

In deciding that a costs order was appropriate, the tribunal took into account the claimant's means. It found that he was in employment earning £56,000 per annum, that his average bank balance over the relevant period was around £2,170, and that he had about £260,000 equity in a property. The respondent's schedule of solicitor's costs was accepted as reasonable, calculated at 38 hours at £217 per hour plus VAT, and the tribunal ordered the claimant to pay the respondent £10,285.90 in full.