At present, Employment Tribunals can award costs in limited circumstances, including where a party or representative has acted vexatiously, abusively, disruptively or otherwise unreasonably, or where a claim or response had no reasonable prospects of success.
The consultation focuses on two proposed changes affecting Employment Tribunals.
The first proposal would give Employment Tribunals an express power to order a payment on account of costs before the final costs assessment takes place.
This would allow a Tribunal, after deciding that costs should be awarded, to require the paying party to make an interim payment before the precise amount of costs is formally assessed. Similar powers already exist in several other tribunals.
The TPC states that the aim is to create greater consistency across the tribunal system and reduce uncertainty about whether such powers already exist.
The second proposal relates to “pro bono costs orders”. These orders allow Tribunals to require payment to a prescribed charity where a party has received free legal representation and would otherwise have been entitled to recover costs.
The TPC proposes introducing a short rule expressly highlighting the existing statutory power to make such orders in Employment Tribunals.
The consultation does not propose introducing a general power for Employment Tribunals to award interest on costs. The TPC explains that, unlike other tribunals, it does not currently consider it has...
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