Claimant v Kingshurst Parish Council

Outcome

Facts

The claimant, an unpaid elected Parish Councillor, brought his fourth employment tribunal claim between June 2023 and October 2024. This claim alleged direct discrimination based on philosophical belief (belief in democracy) under s58 Equality Act 2010. The alleged acts included refusal to provide hard copies of council paperwork, failure to provide allowance slips, blocking email access, refusal of training, and restrictions on speaking at meetings. The respondent argued these were the same factual complaints as in three earlier claims (one settled via ACAS COT3, two dismissed at preliminary hearing on jurisdictional grounds), now repackaged under a different protected characteristic and statutory provision.

Decision

The tribunal struck out the claim in its entirety on grounds of cause of action estoppel and abuse of process under Henderson v Henderson. Employment Judge Bansal found the claimant was impermissibly attempting to re-litigate matters already determined by relying on a different statutory provision and protected characteristic. The claimant could and should have raised all relevant statutory grounds including s58 and philosophical belief in the earlier claims. There were no exceptional circumstances to justify departure from the principle of finality in litigation.

Practical note

Legal authorities cited