Paige Parker v Savills Management Resources Ltd RECORD OF A PRELIMINARY HEARING — 2025

Paige Parker was employed by Savills Management Resources Ltd as a Front of House Executive from 7 November 2022 until 2 February 2024. The case was described in the reasons as a disability discrimination claim. A preliminary hearing was listed for 31 October 2024 by CVP, and standard directions required the Respondent to prepare a draft list of issues and the Claimant to prepare a schedule of loss.

The Claimant told the tribunal on 5 August 2024 that she had moved to Manchester but did not provide a new address. Neither party attended the 31 October 2024 hearing. Employment Judge Drake accepted the Respondent representative's technical difficulty explanation, but noted that the Claimant had given no explanation for her non-attendance. The hearing was adjourned and the Claimant was ordered to show cause why the claims should not be struck out for non-attendance and to provide a statement explaining her absence by 28 November 2024.

The Claimant did not comply with that order. At the further preliminary hearing on 22 January 2025 she again did not attend, and had still not provided the tribunal with a phone number or new address. The Respondent asked the tribunal to dismiss the claim under Rule 47, submitting that the Claimant had already had three opportunities to engage with the proceedings and that a further hearing would likely lead to further expense and delay.

Employment Judge C Lewis decided, on balance, to dismiss the claim under Rule 47. The tribunal said that dismissal was proportionate, having taken account of the overriding objective in Rule 3. The judgment also noted that if the Claimant had an explanation for her non-attendance and wished to continue, she could apply for reconsideration under Rule 69 within 14 days of the decision being sent out.