The Claimant submitted her claims of unfair dismissal, unpaid wages and discrimination but they were rejected firstly because she had not complied with the method of presenting her claims, secondly because she had failed to add the EC number and thirdly because, by this time, the claim was 3 days late. Her application for an extension of time was refused on the basis that there were 11 days of unexplained delay, between the date the ET sent her the letter about the lack of EC number and the date the claim form was eventually received by the ET. The Claimant appealed.

The EAT allowed the appeal in part, saying that whilst the Judge had a broad discretion in determining whether it would be just and equitable to extend, such discretion had to be exercised having regard to all relevant factors. Here, it was relevant that there was a period of unexplained delay, but the factual basis for the length of that period appears to have been incorrect, in that the Claimant had posted her claim to the ET some days earlier than the ET appears to have considered, and which was within the time limit. The matter would be remitted for the ET to consider whether, taking the proper period of delay into account, and the claimant’s two previous attempts at submitting her claim, it would be just and equitable to extend.