The timing of settlement in employment disputes, where information improves as the surplus available to divide shrinks.
Costs; settlement offers; the Calderbank principle (automatic costs for rejecting a reasonable offer) does not apply in employment tribunals, but rejection of a 'without prejudice save as to costs' offer is evidence of unreasonable conduct that a tribunal may consider when exercising its costs discretion. [Summary checked against a practitioner text, not the judgment.]
Costs; causation; the tribunal must look at the whole picture of unreasonable conduct.
Cited by
References found in the judgments’ text, with the number of paragraphs in which each case is mentioned. Not a classification: how a case was treated is recorded under Later history.
Settlement; s.111A ERA 1996; without prejudice privilege. Section 111A must be read on its own terms, not through the lens of common law without prejudice privilege [46], [61]. It renders inadmissible the fact of pre-termination negotiations, not only their content [40], [61]. It is not limited to evidence from those directly involved: reports of the discussions to a board, higher management or HR are covered [43]. It applies only to the unfair dismissal claim: the same evidence may be admitted for a discrimination claim [38]. Section 111A inadmissibility cannot be waived, even by agreement, given the absence of any such exception and s.203 ERA 1996 [45], [65]. Improper behaviour under s.111A(4) is potentially broader than unambiguous impropriety [48]. At common law the employer had waived privilege by relying on the material in its ET3 [55]. HHJ Eady QC allowed the appeal on s.111A; the s.111A(4) question required remission [64], [66].
Cited by
References found in the judgments’ text, with the number of paragraphs in which each case is mentioned. Not a classification: how a case was treated is recorded under Later history.