The claimant had been made redundant while on maternity leave. She started a claim of maternity discrimination under section 18 Equality Act 2010 but at the liability hearing, the Employment Tribunal considered the claimant to be putting a case of a breach of reg 10 of the Maternity and Parental Leave etc Regulations 1999 and went on to find that a claim of automatic unfair dismissal under s.99 Employment Rights Act 1996 had been made out. The respondent appealed

Eady J allowed the appeal finding that the ET was wrong to proceed to determine a complaint that, on its own understanding of the procedural history, had not been part of the claimant’s original claim and had not been identified as a separate cause of action at any earlier stage. Instead it should have been treated as an application to amend and had it done so, the ET would have had to consider the relevant time limit, and it had been wrong to refuse to address this issue.