Case preparation

New tribunal procedural rules were brought in on 29 July 2013 — the Employment Tribunals (Constitution and Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2013. These are the main changes:

• new claim and response forms were launched on 29 July 2013;

• a claim form will be rejected if it is not accompanied by the fee or a remission application;

• an initial paper “sifting” process by an employment judge has been introduced. The judge’s role is to examine all the claim and response forms to decide whether they disclose an arguable case and defence. If the judge decides that the claim or response is not arguable and that the case should be dismissed without a hearing, there is a right to make written submissions to resist this;

• case management discussions and pre-hearing reviews have been merged into one type of hearing known as a preliminary hearing;

• the rules now expressly allow for hearings to be conducted electronically including by phone; and

• changes have been made to the rules governing the tribunal’s power to award costs, including allowing employment judges to carry out detailed costs assessments (not limited to £20,000) instead of making an order that the County Court assess the costs.