Reverend Dr B Randall v The Bishop of Derby and 5 others — 2023

The judgment was a paper decision by Employment Judge Ayre on 30 March 2023 dealing only with the claimant's application to amend his Particulars of Claim. The application was made after the evidence and written submissions had been completed at a two-day preliminary hearing in February 2023. The proposed amendment would add an allegation under s.53(1) and/or s.53(2)(c) Equality Act 2010 that the First Respondent discriminated against the claimant, and would plead that Respondents 3 to 5 were liable as acting on behalf of the First Respondent.

The claimant said the amendment was no more than a relabelling of an existing case and would not require new evidence. The respondents opposed it. The First Respondent said the new point was a third jurisdictional limb, based on the Bishop's power to issue a licence, and that the original case had only been advanced on the PTO and safeguarding/CCSL bases. The other respondents said the amendment was late, widened the issues, and would increase cost and delay.

Applying the amendment principles in Chapman, Cocking, Selkent, Vaughan and Abercrombie, the tribunal held that the new argument was raised for the first time on 24 February 2023 after skeleton arguments and evidence had been filed and heard, with no explanation for the delay. It found the licence point would require further factual enquiry, further evidence and probably a further preliminary hearing, and that the respondents would be prejudiced by the extra cost and delay. The claimant remained able to pursue the original two jurisdictional arguments, so the balance of injustice and hardship favoured refusing the amendment. The application to amend was refused; the judgment did not determine the merits of the underlying discrimination claim and no remedy was awarded.