How Much Does Justice Cost?

Posted on August 17, 2013

You probably haven’t seen or heard that from 29 July 2013 employment tribunals are now going to cost money simply to make a claim; this will be the first time that an English Law Court will have an indiscriminate fee for simply applying.

Let’s start with the basics; a claim will now cost the ex-employee £250 to lodge, and then a further £950 if they want to actually go to court.  This means they’ll have spent £1200 before their case is even heard – there is a lower fee of £390 for certain cases but I am not going to go into that.

The new fees are designed to address the problem of frivolous lawsuits; if it’s going to cost the ex-employee £1200 and they know they’re only making a claim because they don’t like their ex-employer then they will think twice before lodging a claim!

There is one (rather large) loophole in this plan; the fees are not applicable to the unemployed.  A few moments thought on that and you will probably come to the conclusion that this was perhaps not the best idea, as an unemployed person does not have anything to lose, especially if they are not paying . . .

A few points to take into consideration are that;
– Although an unemployed person can make a free claim there will not be droves of people quitting their jobs to make claims, as damages are reduced if you do not mitigate your losses (try to get a job).
– The fees apply to anyone who is employed, regardless of who your employer is.
– In case you were thinking of making a legal challenge someone has beaten you to it; if the court finds that the fees are not legal they will have to repay any fees taken – do not hold your  breath though – the case will not be over any time soon, and there are various appeal routes before the decision is final.
– The fees above are a total; if you only go part way through the process, a specific fee will be imposed.
– If you would like more information, please have a look at this fact sheet: http://www.justice.gov.uk/downloads/tribunals/employment/et-fees-factsheet.pdf