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COVID-19: employment tribunal hearings to be held remotely

All in-person hearings at employment tribunals in Scotland, England and Wales are to be converted to a case management hearing by telephone or other electronic means and will take place on the first day allocated for the hearing, lawyers have been told

The Presidents of the Employment Tribunals in England & Wales and in Scotland issued the direction this week. It will apply from 23 March.

The Presidents’ statement said: ‘This will provide an opportunity to discuss how best to proceed in the light of the Presidential Guidance dated 18 March 2020, unless in the individual case the President, a Regional Employment Judge or the Vice-President directs otherwise.

‘If the case is set down for more than one day then parties should proceed on the basis that the remainder of the days fixed have been cancelled. For the avoidance of doubt, this direction also applies to any hearing that is already in progress on Monday 23 March 2020 and, if not already addressed before then, the parties may assume that the hearing on that day is converted to a case management hearing of the kind referred to above. The parties remain free to make any application to the tribunal at any time.’

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