Miss Charlotte Glasgow v Respondent — 2020

Miss Charlotte Glasgow brought a disability discrimination claim against Tesco Personal Finance plc. The tribunal recorded that disability status had remained in issue throughout case management, with the respondent not conceding that the claimant was a disabled person for Equality Act 2010 purposes. The parties had exchanged correspondence about medical evidence, but the claimant did not provide the disclosure sought and her representatives later ceased to act for her.

At the preliminary hearing by telephone on 13 August 2020, the clerk telephoned the number on the claim form four times and each call went to voicemail. The claimant had not provided an alternative number, had not responded to the tribunal's later correspondence, and had not told the tribunal or the respondent that she could not attend or was seeking a postponement. The employment judge was satisfied that she was aware of the hearing.

The judge concluded that the respondent had taken account of the information the claimant was willing and/or able to provide in relation to disability status, but that the claimant did not appear to be actively pursuing the claim because she had not replied to recent correspondence and had failed to participate in the preliminary hearing. The claim was therefore dismissed under rule 47 of the Employment Tribunals (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2013 for failure to attend the hearing. No merits finding was made on the discrimination complaint and no remedy was awarded.