Jones

In the case of Chouafi v London United Busways Ltd [2005], the plaintiff was employed as a driver by the defendant company. In October 2003, he was diagnosed with serious depression and was signed off work until February 2004. He was dismissed in January 2004 on the grounds of his medical problem and complained to the employment tribunal of disability discrimination and unfair dismissal.

The Employment Rights Act 1996 provides an employment tribunal shan't think about a complaint for unfair dismissal unless it is offered to the tribunal within 90 days of the effective date of termination of employment.

However this three-month limitation period could be expanded if the tribunal considers that in the case, it was not reasonably practicable for the problem to be introduced within the 90 days.

There are similar conditions underneath the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

The tribunal decided that:-

The complaint of unfair dismissal hadn't been introduced within the three-month time frame, pursuant to s 111 of the Employment Rights Act 1996;

The problem of disability discrimination had not been introduced within the three-month time frame, pursuant to the para 3 Schedule 3 of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995; and

Accordingly, the tribunal did not have authority to know the claims.

The employee appealed to the Employment Appeal Tribunal ("EAT") from the decision. The EAT held that:-

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Decisions on whether or not a claim will be accepted out of time, for unfair dismissal or disability discrimination, were essentially questions of facts on which the tribunal must decide based upon the evidence submitted by the parties;

The onus of proof was on the plaintiff to show it wasn't reasonably practicable to bring an within the three-month time limit;

If the claimant failed to discharge that burden of proof, his/her case would inevitably fail;

In this instance, the claimant failed to attend the hearing and give more data about his intellectual health; and

The Tribunal was right in concluding that the employee had didn't offer an sufficient explanation for filing his claim away from time period ; and

The tribunal's decision will be upheld.

The claimant's appeal was for that reason dismissed.

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RT COOPERS, 2005. That Briefing Note does not give a detailed or complete record of the law associated with the difficulties discussed nor does it constitute legal counsel. It is intended only to highlight general issues. Expert legal counsel should be sought with regards to specific circumstances.