Mrs N McIntyre v Ltd (In Liquidation) — 2023

This was a preliminary hearing to decide whether the claimant's claims had been presented out of time and, if so, whether they should be accepted late. The claimant had resigned on 29 November 2022, contacted ACAS on 16 December 2022, and submitted a claim on 24 February 2023. That claim was rejected because the last two digits of the early conciliation certificate numbers were omitted.

The Tribunal found the claimant credible and reliable. It accepted that she had made a minor technical error, had no professional representation for the tribunal claim, was dealing with an NMC referral, was working 12-hour shifts, and was genuinely confused by the tribunal correspondence. Although it would have been possible to resubmit a corrected claim before the deadline, the Tribunal held that it was reasonable in the circumstances for her to seek clarification and await a response.

The Tribunal held that, for claims where time runs from the effective date of termination, it was not reasonably practicable to present the claims in time and that the corrected claim was presented within a further reasonable period. Questions about whether any whistleblowing detriment or Working Time Regulations claims should run from earlier dates, and the correct employing entity, were reserved for the final hearing.