Increased use of Video Hearings and Electronic Bundles

Practitioners should be aware of Guidance issued by the President of Employment Tribunals for England and Wales in June 2026.

With effect from 4 June 2026, the new guidance on mode of hearing and remote participation took effect. The effect is to encourage more video hearings.

The default is that preliminary hearings (“PHs”) for case management, will be by telephone or video. More in depth PHs to determine a preliminary issue, consider strike out / deposit orders, and interim relief applications will normally be by video. Dispute resolution hearings (judicial mediation, judicial assessment and DRAs), reconsideration hearings and costs hearings will normally be by video. Short track claims (e.g. unpaid wages, notice, holiday or redundancy pay) will normally be by video.

Because the default to video hearing in the above cases is for listing purposes only, the parties can express a contrary wish, in correspondence or at a PH, and it is open for a judge to decide, in the interests of justice, that the default approach should not apply.

There is no default approach for final hearings of standard or open track cases. However, the aspiration remains for them to be in person, particularly where they are 3 days or more in length / involve significantly contested evidence.

The guidance also addresses the requirement for consistency in bundle preparation and the use of electronic documents. It includes clear instructions on the format of documents and bundles as well as how to send them to the Tribunal. It is a requirement for the first page to be numbered 1 whether or not it is an index page (so that the page numbering corresponds with the electronic pdf numbers).