Employment tribunals 'only awarding costs in exceptional circumstances'

Tribunals are becoming willing to order dubious claimants to shoulder the legal costs in employment law cases, it has been claimed.

Aron Pope, a senior associate practising in this area, has told Director of Finance that this is a change in attitude but is typically only used where the case is either vexatious or misconceived.

He said that costs awards remain the exception rather than the rule and used to dissuade people from bringing hopeless or vindictive claims against their employers.

Mr Pope added: "The general rule in tribunal litigation is that each side bears its own costs regardless of the outcome."

He said that this differs from litigation that gets brought to the courts, where the losing side typically pays for both their own and the winning side's costs.

In other news, the Daily Echo has reported that 500 people are planning to file employment tribunal cases against Southampton Council in the aftermath of cuts implemented by the local authority.

Published by Phil Hammond