Preliminary hearings 



Sometimes, tribunals hold a preliminary hearing before the main trial of the claim. This can happen, for example, where a claim needs complicated management, beyond the standard directions listed above. Lots of issues can be dealt with by writing to the tribunal, but sometimes a hearing is unavoidable. 



Sometimes, preliminary hearings are used to decide particular issues in the claim. This usually happens in cases where resolving one issue will decide the whole claim, avoiding the need for a lengthy trial. For example, in a claim for disability discrimination where the employer disputes that the claimant is disabled, costs can be saved by holding a preliminary hearing in advance, in which the only issue to decide is whether the claimant has a disability. This is because if the tribunal concludes that the claimant is not disabled, the whole claim must fail (see Chapter 7). Other good examples are issues of employment status, for example, whether a claimant is an employee, or whether a claim was brought in time. 



Preliminary hearings about case management issues take place in private (sometimes on the phone). However, preliminary hearings that could result in a whole case being decided once and for all must be heard in public.