EAT Practice and Procedure – Striking-out/dismissal. – The parents of a child at a nursery where the claimant was employed complained to the respondent, the claimant’s employer, that she had struck their child. They and their child were interviewed by the respondent’s solicitor who promised to preserve their anonymity. He provided a report to the respondent which was copied to the claimant. The identities of the child and its parents were duly anonymised. The claimant was dismissed. She had been pregnant at the time and she claimed in respect of automatic unfair dismissal on grounds of pregnancy. She also asserted that her claim covered a claim for unfair dismissal simpliciter. At a case management hearing, a tribunal chairman had ordered disclosure of the identities of the parents and their child. The respondent appealed the order and the Employment Appeal Tribunal upheld the appeal in respect that it was not necessary for either aspect of the claimant’s claim that she know those identities. The issue of whether or not the claimant had in fact struck the child was irrelevant. In these circumstances, the tribunal should have been slow to interfere with the promise of anonymity. The interests of justice did not require that it be breached.
Judges:
The Honourable Lady Smith
Citations:
UKEATS/0069/05, [2006] UKEAT 0069 – 05 – 2001
Links:
Employment
Updated: 05 July 2022; Ref: scu.240208