Consultation on Employment Tribunal Fees

[Thanks to Laurie Anstis of Boyes Turner, who is standing in for Daniel Barnett during his absence, for preparing this summary]

The Ministry of Justice has today issued a consultation document on charging fees in employment tribunals and the Employment Appeal Tribunal.

In the employment tribunal, two alternative options are put forward.

For the first option, the fee would depend on the nature of the claim, with three suggested levels. Level one would cover claims for unpaid wages and redundancy payments, level two would cover unfair dismissal claims and level three would be for discrimination and whistleblowing claims. Separate issue and hearing fees are proposed, with "indicative fees" of between £150-£250 for issue of a claim and £250-£1,250 for a hearing.

The second option would introduce a fourth level of fees, for claims where the claimant is seeking an award of over £30,000, and have issue fees only, ranging from £200 to £1,750.

The consultation paper contains much detail about the proposals, including fee remission, fee refunds, discounts in the case of multiple claims, and fees for other tribunal procedures, such as requesting written reasons for a judgment.

An issue fee of £400 and hearing fee of £1,200 is proposed for the Employment Appeal Tribunal.

The consultation closes on 6 March 2012.