Handling employment tribunal claims

Challenging a tribunal judgement

There are limited rights to apply for a review of an Employment Tribunal judgment, or to appeal against the judgement to the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT). Grounds for review are contained in the booklet The Judgment which will accompany the judgment.

You may appeal only:

• on a point of a law, ie on the grounds that the employment tribunal misunderstood or misapplied the law
• if the judgment based on the evidence presented was one that no reasonable tribunal would have reached

The appeal tribunal will be a judge alone or a judge and two lay (non-legal) members. The EAT does not usually listen to new evidence. You may represent yourself or be represented, eg by your employers' association or a lawyer. If you wish to appeal, tell your representative (if you have one) and ask the Employment Tribunal for the written reasons for their judgment.

You then have 42 days from the date your receive the written reasons (or 42 days from the date of the judgment if no written reasons are given and you have not requested them within 14 days of receiving the written record of the judgment) to put in your notice of appeal. Enclose a copy of the written reasons.

If you are appealing against an order or direction given at a preliminary hearing, you must appeal within 42 days of the order or direction. Be sure to enclose a copy of it if it's in writing.

You should get an acknowledgement of receipt from the EAT within seven days. If you do not, you must make inquiries. Do not leave sending your appeal until the last minute as the EAT applies the time limit very strictly.

You can view information about getting a judgment reviewed at the Employment Tribunals website.

Appeals from the EAT

It is possible to appeal to the Court of Appeal on a point of law but only with the permission of the EAT or the Court of Appeal.

Subjects covered in this guide

• Introduction
• What happens after an employment tribunal receives a claim
• Alternative ways of resolving employment disputes
• Acas conciliation
• Preparing for a tribunal case
• Tribunal procedure - hearings before/after the main hearing
• Tribunal procedure - the main hearing
• Possible outcomes from tribunal cases
• Challenging a tribunal judgement

 

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