Mr P Doslik Smith v Alfa Tail Lifts Ltd — 2024

At the preliminary hearing on 27 August 2024, the Employment Judge said he could not identify a complaint of direct sex discrimination, indirect sex discrimination or victimisation with a reasonable prospect of success. The resulting order gave the claimant 21 days to take advice and either confirm that those Equality Act complaints were withdrawn or provide essential further information by 17 September 2024.

The respondent applied on 26 September 2024 for strike out of the Equality Act complaints and noted that the claimant had not provided the further details needed for the protected disclosure relied on in the unfair dismissal claim, or a schedule of loss. The claimant did not respond to that application, to subsequent chasers, or to the strike out warnings issued on 25 November 2024.

The tribunal found that the claimant had not engaged with the respondent or the tribunal since the 27 August 2024 preliminary hearing, and had breached several orders needed to prepare the case for a fair and efficient hearing. It held that the claim was no longer actively pursued and that the claimant's failure to engage made a fair hearing impossible on the listed dates.

The whole claim was therefore struck out under rule 37(1)(d) of the Employment Tribunals Rules of Procedure 2013. The judge said that, if necessary, the decision could alternatively have been based on rule 37(1)(c) because the failure to comply with tribunal orders had made a fair hearing impossible.