Claimant v BFS Group Limited

Outcome

Facts

The claimant presented his first claim on 26 June 2024 while still employed. He was dismissed on 14 April 2025. On 22 May 2025, seven days before a scheduled preliminary hearing, the claimant applied to postpone the hearing because he had presented a second claim arising from his dismissal and sought consolidation. The postponement was initially refused on 27 May 2025 but granted on 28 May 2025. The respondent then applied for costs on the basis that the postponement application was made less than 7 days before the hearing and amounted to unreasonable conduct.

Decision

Employment Judge Hawksworth refused the respondent's costs application. The judge found that the 27 May email was a renewal of the earlier 22 May application (made 7 days before the hearing), not a new application. The claimant's conduct was not unreasonable: he had given advance notice of a likely postponement, the timeframe was tight, and postponement avoided the need for two separate preliminary hearings. Even if grounds for costs existed, the judge would not have exercised discretion to award them because the costs arose from presenting the second claim, not the postponement timing.

Practical note

Legal authorities cited