Tribunal should not extend time where late submission of the claim is due to a solicitor’s error

In BLISS Residential Care Ltd v Fellows, the EAT held that an employment tribunal should not have accepted a late unfair dismissal claim where the lateness was due to errors made by the claimant’s solicitor.

The employee instructed a firm of solicitors to assist her in bringing a claim for unfair dismissal. Her claim was handled by a newly qualified solicitor, who was dealing with her first employment tribunal claim. The claim arose during the COVID pandemic, which caused considerable administrative difficulties for the solicitors and meant that the junior solicitor was working from home with limitations on her supervision.

The solicitor sent the ET1 by post to the wrong address and, when it was returned, failed to appreciate that the claim could still be presented in time if submitted online. She resubmitted the claim by post, and it was received two days outside the primary time limit.

The EAT noted the long-established principle set down by the Court of Appeal in Dedman v British Building and Engineering Appliances Ltd 1974 ICR 53 that any unreasonable ignorance or mistake on the part of a skilled legal adviser is attributed to the claimant. The EAT then concluded that there was only one possible outcome on the facts: it was reasonably practicable for the claim to have been submitted within the primary time limit and, accordingly, the claim had to be dismissed.

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Authors

Daniel Hobbs

Call 1998

Related areas

Employment

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