Bias in Tribunal Decision
by Emma
This recent case considered the possible bias of a Tribunal lay member towards an employer. Unusually the Employment Appeal Tribunal held that there had been apparent bias.
A senior legal executive had brought a successful unfair dismissal claim against the City and County of Swansea. One of the Tribunal’s lay members was District General Secretary of the RMT at the time and was actively involved in a dispute with the Respondent over the licensing of taxi cabs. He had openly criticised the Respondents in writing and in the press. The Respondent did not discover this until after the merits hearing but asked for a review on the basis of bias before the remedies hearing. The review was refused. The Respondent appealed to the EAT which upheld the appeal saying ” this was a plain case of apparent bias and it was surprising that (a) the lay member had not volunteered the relevant information and (b) that the Tribunal had not itself recognised, when the matter was aired at review, that the demands of impartiality required that the review be granted”.
As I understand it employment judges do not normally sit in an area where they also work as a lawyer so as to minimise any conflict or bias situations. Does this not also apply to lay members?
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