MRS P B COLLETT v DIOCESE OF HALLAM TRUSTEE [2001] UKEAT 1400_00_0105
[1]APPEARANCES For the Appellant MR MARK AFEEVA (of Counsel) Instructed by: Sheffield Law Centre Waverley House 10 Joiner Street Sheffield JUDGE A WAKEFIELD This is an ex-parte preliminary hearing of an appeal by Mrs P Collett against a Decision of an Employment Tribunal sitting at Sheffield and given on 28 September 2000, by which it was decided, as a preliminary point of law, that she was not disabled within the meaning of Section 1 of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.[2]The grounds of appeal are twofold: firstly that the Employment Tribunal erred in law in that it failed to make any reference, in considering the issue of disability, to the guidance issued by the Secretary of State pursuant to Section 3 of the Act and secondly that it erred in law in that it failed to consider disability in the period subsequent to the date of the complaint.[3]In our view, both these grounds are arguable. It is clear from the Decision itself and from the reasons given for a refusal to review that Decision, the latter determination having been made on 5 February 2001, that the Employment Tribunal were not referred at the original hearing to the guidance under Section 3 and did not themselves consider that guidance. They should have done so. See Goodwin v The Patent Office [1999] IRLR 4 . That failure may impugn the original Decision.[4]It is also clear that the only period of time the Employment Tribunal considered, for the purposes of determining the issue of disability, was that up to the time of the complaint. As referred to in Greenwood v British Airways PLC [1999] ICR 969 , the Appellant's condition, up to and including the Tribunal hearing should also have been taken into account.[5]The appeal will therefore proceed to a full hearing. Category C, half a day, and Skeleton Arguments should be delivered to this Tribunal and exchanged, not later than 14 days prior to the hearing date.