The Claimant failed to present her appeal to the EAT within the time limit and applied for an extension of time on the basis that the Respondent’s alleged conduct of the tribunal proceedings had caused her to suffer poor mental health which in turn meant she was impaired in her ability to meet the time limit. The Claimant’s appealed against the following decisions of the Registrar:

1. A refusal of an extension of time to appeal case management decisions including refusal to grant an anonymity order and other restrictions on open justice pursuant to rule 50 Employment Tribunal Rules.
2. Directions regarding which party should prepare a paper bundle and which documents ought to be included.

The EAT dismissed the appeals. The reasons given by the Claimant for the delay, whether taken separately or cumulatively, were not adequate to explain the delay. The appeal in relation to the order which the Claimant sought in relation to excluding the public from the final hearing and the direction for specific disclosure and further information was extremely weak on the merits: it was a case management decision which was well open to the EJ and one which was the right one in any event.