Tribunal fees are back on the agenda

The Government is currently consulting on the re-introduction of Employment Tribunal (ET) fees.

Previously introduced in 2013, claimants were charged anywhere between £390 and £1,600 to claim the ET, depending on the type of claim.

A further fee was also required should they wish to appeal to the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT).

This led to a significant drop in the number of cases brought to tribunal.

In a case raised by UNISON, The Supreme Court ruled against the fees, stating that it was unlawful and prevented access to justice, especially where there was no guarantee that a claimant would even be successful or, if successful, that they would receive enough money to counteract the cost of the fees.

The fees were then abolished in July 2017.

However, the Government is now consulting on re-introducing tribunal fees, which they suggest are more affordable at a set rate of £55 on submission of any type of claim.

This would cover the entire journey of the claim, and where there are multiple claimants, it would still be covered by the single £55 fee.

There would also be the civil court fee remission scheme “Help with Fees” to support those on low incomes.

There would however be an additional fee of £55 for each judgement or decision that the appellant makes to the EAT.

There are currently no plans to introduce a fee for the defendant or require the defendant to contribute to a claimant’s fee.

But where the defendant is unsuccessful, the tribunal can still potentially order that they repay the claimant’s fee.