Mr. W. Maseke v 1) Telefonica UK Ltd. 2) O2 — 2025

The claimant did not attend the hearing on 17 November 2025 and gave no reason; the clerk's call went unanswered. Employment Judge Coll struck out the claim in its entirety under Rule 38(1)(a) of the Employment Tribunal Procedure Rules 2024 on the basis that the complaints were scandalous or vexatious or had no reasonable prospect of success, and in the alternative under Rule 38(1)(b) on the basis of the manner in which the proceedings had been conducted. The judge noted that this was the claimant's 11th claim concerning employment which ended in 2022, and that the subject matter duplicated the 5th and 8th claims, the former having been struck out on its merits and the latter on procedural grounds.

The Tribunal also made a costs order under Rule 74, finding the claimant had acted vexatiously, abusively, disruptively or otherwise unreasonably in bringing the proceedings or the way they were conducted. The claimant had been put on notice in early September 2025 about the respondent's intention to seek costs if the strike out application succeeded and had the opportunity to make representations, including as to means, but did not do so. Counsel indicated hearing fees were well in excess of £4,000 but the respondent sought only a token amount; the judge identified £30 as appropriate to deter further such claims, payable within 35 days.