UNISON lodged an application last year calling for a judicial review of the decision made by the Ministry of Justice to introduce fees in the Employment Tribunal and the Employment Appeal Tribunal. The High Court dismissed UNISON's application.
UNISON's challenge is now back on track. It has been confirmed that UNISON has been granted permission to appeal against the High Court's decision.
As a brief reminder, together with a number of other legal arguments being progressed, UNISON's argument is that that the introduction of fees would be indirectly discriminatory by having a disproportionately adverse impact on women.
UNISON has made it clear that, in support of its application, it will ask the Court of Appeal to consider the 'shocking' quarterly tribunal statistics published in the first six months following the introduction of fees. You may recall that the figures published revealed a 79% decline in the number of employment tribunal claims received in comparison to the same period the previous year.
We will keep you updated as the challenge continues!
The full statement issued by UNISON can be found here.
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The material contained in this article is of the nature of general comment only and does not give advice on any particular matter. Recipients should not act on the basis of the information in this e-update without taking appropriate professional advice upon their own particular circumstances.
