EAT Unfair Dismissal : Reasonableness of Dismissal – PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – New evidence on appeal
The Claimant, a bus driver, was dismissed for covering up a CCTV camera in his cab. His principal ground of appeal was that the Employment Judge was perverse in finding that it was reasonable to impose the sanction of dismissal for covering up a CCTV camera. Appeal rejected.
The Claimant had referred in his Notice of Appeal to fresh evidence and in effect made an application for the admission of fresh evidence. His counsel correctly took the view that it was better to raise that fresh evidence with the Employment Judge by way of an application for reconsideration. When an appeal is considered on paper at an early stage it is often the practice of the EAT to stay an appeal pending reconsideration by the Employment Judge or Tribunal. But here, where the matter arose at the final hearing, and where the application to adduce fresh evidence was a free-standing application raising no question of law, it was better to dismiss the appeal. In the event that the Employment Judge erred in law in reconsidering the case the Claimant would be able to appeal against that decision. Paragraph 10.1 of the EAT 2013 Practice Direction considered.
David Richardson HHJ
[2014] UKEAT 0059 – 14 – 1707
Bailii
England and Wales
Employment
Updated: 21 December 2021; Ref: scu.536690