Employment Tribunal Format

E

ericv

Guest
I am just wondering about the format of the employment tribunal.

My solicitor told me it is judged by a panel of 3; one judge, one union rep and one company rep. He also told me the union rep usually goes with the worker, the company rep sides with the company and then the judge ends up deciding.

Anyway so what I would like to know is the following. Are rebuttals allowed? Depending on the approach my former employer take to defend themselves I would like to use different evidence from my old email inbox.
So I would like to bring a laptop to court and print out emails to refute their claims if necessary. Would I need to print out everything in advance or would it be possible to have a recess to get that done?

Does the company or the former employee present their info first? Are there any cross examinations? Are you allowed to refute claims or is it just two presentations and a decision? My solicitor is good but I emigrated after losing my job so it is difficult to ask him.
 
Hi Eric

You may well be misquoting your solicitor, but if he told you that, he does not sound great. There is no judge present. The tribunal chairman is an independent person, usually a barrister.

I am sure that the Trade Union guy does sometimes side with the worker, but my understanding is that many cases are very clear and the decision is unanimous. The person who loses thinks it's unfair, but in reality, most decisions are fair enough.

The EAT hearings are open to the public. Go down for the day and listen to a hearing from start to finish.

I remember a former chairman telling me that a lot of people make some fundamental mistake in relation to evidence. Unfortunately, I can't remember what that error was. It was something to do with bringing up some matter too late to be admissable. In other words, they had to bring it up in their opening statement.

Having said that, the process is designed to be less formal than the courts.

The most likely outcome is that your solicitor will get a call with an offer about two weeks before the hearing.

Brendan
 
My experience was that the solicitor had prepared a binder with info re the correspondence between me and teh company, so all the emails etc you speak of should be included in that. What I was not prepared for was that just before we went in, the employer made an offer so the solicitors are talking and then then say ot to you and you're on your own. Do ask them for the cost of their fees including VAT as they often quote excl VAT and take this into acount before making any decision.
While it is infirmal, when its you at the centre of it, it does feel daunting. Best of luck to you. Worse case you are never going to work for that company again.
 
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