An employment judge has expressed ‘considerable sympathy’ for litigants in person involved in ‘complicated litigation’ after dismissing a claimant’s application.
The claimant, named as Ms C Harvey, was represented by her daughter, who is an experienced lawyer but not an employment lawyer. The relationship was 'personal and supportive’ but Harvey was not ‘legally represented’, said employment judge Tobias Vincent Ryan, sitting in Wrexham.
Harvey claimed against the secretary of state for justice for disability discrimination, victimisation and unauthorised deductions from wages. Her claims were dismissed in full by oral judgment. Written judgment was handed down the following day and Harvey made an application for a preparation time order, a type of costs order.
The judge accepted ‘the preparation for the hearing was not smooth’ and that Harvey and ‘her representative put a considerable amount of work into it’. Dismissing the application, however, he said: ‘I am not satisfied that [the claimant and her representative] have established that the respondent acted in such a way as to justify a preparation time order’.
In the judgment, he said: ‘I have considerable sympathy for any litigant in person involved in such complicated litigation, especially facing professionally represented opponents. Litigation is difficult; it is labour-intensive. It is difficult and labour intensive for legal representatives as well, but they may be used to it and they are at least familiar with the tribunal’s requirements and what will be required by both parties at a hearing if it is to be a fair hearing.
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‘For the uninitiated litigation must seem like an opaque barrier to having one’s claims, complaints, and grievances aired and considered. It may be felt that the system is not ideal, however it is the best that we have got.
‘The parties and the tribunal have to deal not only with the complexity of the law, the rigours of the rules, but also human nature and the fact that unplanned and unforeseen circumstances may arise that hinder smooth preparation.’
