Ms D Fitzpatrick v The Scottish Ministers — 2021

This was a preliminary hearing judgment on the claimant's application to amend existing claims for unfair dismissal and breach of contract. The tribunal recorded that the claimant sought to add a section 103A Employment Rights Act 1996 claim, a procedural unfairness amendment, and Equality Act 2010 claims for direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation relying on sex, age, race, religion or belief and disability.

The tribunal held that the procedural unfairness point was already within the existing unfair dismissal claim and did not require amendment. It refused permission to add the Equality Act claims, finding that they were entirely new claims with little or no causative link to the original claim form, lacked adequate specification, were out of time unless a just and equitable extension was granted, and would cause material prejudice and likely delay if allowed.

The tribunal allowed the section 103A amendment only in limited part. It permitted the claimant to rely on an email sent by her trade union representative on 17 September 2010 and an email allegedly sent in February 2011 about the Chair Incident, provided the latter was produced. It refused permission to rely on the other alleged disclosures because they were historic or insufficiently specified and would be difficult for the respondent to investigate without undue hardship and prejudice. No substantive liability or remedy was determined.