Gosalakkal v University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust (Costs) UKEAT/0114/18/DA

Appeal against aspects of the detailed assessment by the Employment Judge (“EJ”) of costs awarded against the Claimant in favour of the Respondent. Appeal allowed.

The Claimant was employed by the Respondent as a Consultant Paediatric Neurologist. Relationships within the department were poor and, following numerous allegations and counter-allegations, the Claimant was summarily dismissed. He brought ET proceedings alleging automatic unfair dismissal for making public interest disclosures, "ordinary" unfair dismissal and wrongful dismissal. The ET dismissed all of these claims, concluding that the Claimant's dismissal for gross misconduct was justified. The Respondent made an application for costs against the Claimant, and the EJ found that the Claimant had been unreasonable in his conduct of the proceedings relating to his complaint of automatic unfair dismissal, but no order for costs should be made in respect of the "ordinary" unfair dismissal claim. A detailed assessment of costs was undertaken, and the Claimant appealed mainly on the grounds of disentanglement and proportionality, contending that (1) the EJ had reached a perversely low estimate of the cost of the ordinary unfair dismissal claim, because she did not appreciate the extent to which the issues overlapped between ordinary unfair dismissal and automatic unfair dismissal, and (2) the EJ, in assessing proportionality, erred by taking into account what was an unrealistic assessment of value by a litigant in person.

The EAT held that (1) the EJ misunderstood the degree of overlap between the whistleblowing complaints and the complaints of unfair dismissal and wrongful dismissal, and (2) the EJ had erred in relying simply on an assessment of value by the Claimant and not referring to a properly worked schedule of costs drawn up by the Claimant's solicitors. Accordingly, the appeal would be allowed and the detailed assessment remitted for reconsideration in respect of the issues of disentanglement and proportionality; the parties would make written submissions as to whether remission should be to the same EJ.

http://www.bailii.org/uk/cases/UKEAT/2019/0114_18_0407.html

Published: 17/07/2019 18:52

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