How to Make a Claim to a UK Employment Tribunal: ACAS, the ET1 Form, and the Hearing Process

If you believe your employer has dismissed you unfairly, discriminated against you, or failed to pay wages you are owed, the UK Employment Tribunal is the forum where you can seek a remedy. The tribunal system is designed to be more accessible than the ordinary courts, with no hearing fees and a procedure that allows individuals to represent themselves. But the process has strict deadlines and procedural steps that must be followed. Getting any of them wrong can result in your claim being rejected before it is ever heard. This article walks through the entire tribunal claim process from beginning to end.

Step One: ACAS Early Conciliation

Before you can file a claim with the tribunal, you must contact the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) and go through its early conciliation process. This is a mandatory requirement introduced by the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 and codified in Section 18A of the Employment Tribunals Act 1996. If you skip this step, the tribunal will reject your claim.

You start by submitting an early conciliation notification to ACAS, either online at acas.org.uk or by telephone. ACAS then contacts you and the employer to see whether the dispute can be resolved without a tribunal hearing. The conciliation period lasts up to six weeks initially, and ACAS can extend it by a further two weeks (up to a total of roughly twelve weeks in some cases) if both parties agree and there is a realistic prospect of settlement.

If conciliation succeeds, the parties sign a COT3 settlement agreement through ACAS, which is legally binding and brings the matter to a close. If conciliation fails or one party declines to participate, ACAS issues an early conciliation certificate with a unique reference number. You will need this number when you file your claim form. An important benefit of the ACAS process is that the clock on your limitation period stops running while early conciliation is ongoing, so you are not penalised for attempting to settle.

Step Two: Time Limits

Employment tribunal claims are subject to strict time limits, and missing the deadline is one of the most common reasons claims fail. For most claims, including unfair dismissal, discrimination, and unpaid wages, the time limit is three months less one day from the date of the act complained of. For unfair dismissal, this means three months less one day from the effective date of termination of employment. For discrimination, the clock starts from the date of the discriminatory act, or from the last act in a series of continuing acts.

Redundancy payment claims have a slightly longer limitation period of six months. Equal pay claims may be brought within six months of leaving the employment in question.

The time limit is paused while ACAS early conciliation is running. Once ACAS issues its certificate, you have at least one calendar month from the date of the certificate to submit your claim, even if your original three-month deadline has passed. However, this extension has limits and cannot be stretched indefinitely. If you are approaching a deadline, do not wait. File the early conciliation notification with ACAS immediately, as this stops the clock.

Step Three: Filing the ET1 Claim Form

The ET1 is the official form used to start an employment tribunal claim. It is submitted online through the government's employment tribunal service. The form asks for your personal details, the respondent's name and address (usually the employer), your employment dates, your pay details, and the ACAS early conciliation certificate number.

The most important part of the form is the section where you describe your complaint. You should set out the facts in chronological order, explain what happened, identify the legal basis for your claim (for example, unfair dismissal under Section 98 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, or direct discrimination under Section 13 of the Equality Act 2010), and state what remedy you are seeking. Be specific and factual. Avoid emotional language or irrelevant detail. The tribunal will use your description to understand the scope of your claim, and anything not mentioned may be difficult to add later without applying for an amendment.

You should also state whether you are seeking compensation, reinstatement, or re-engagement, and provide an estimate of the compensation amount if possible. A schedule of loss, setting out exactly how much you claim and how the figure is calculated, should be prepared in any event, though it can be submitted later in the proceedings.

Step Four: The Employer's Response (ET3)

Once the tribunal accepts your ET1, it sends a copy to the respondent along with a notice specifying the deadline for a response. The respondent must file form ET3 within 28 days. The ET3 form requires the employer to confirm or deny the factual allegations, state its legal position, and set out any defences. If the respondent fails to file the ET3 in time, it may be barred from defending the claim entirely, and the tribunal may enter a default judgment in the claimant's favour.

Case Management and Preliminary Hearings

After the ET3 is filed, the tribunal assigns the case to an Employment Judge who issues case management orders. These orders set out the steps each party must take to prepare for the final hearing. Typical directions include preparation of a schedule of loss by the claimant, mutual disclosure of relevant documents, agreement on a bundle of documents, and exchange of witness statements by a specified date.

In straightforward cases, the judge issues written orders without a hearing. In more involved cases, particularly those involving discrimination or whistleblowing, the judge may list a private preliminary hearing (sometimes called a case management discussion) where the parties and the judge discuss the issues in the case, agree a list of issues to be determined at the final hearing, and set a timetable for preparation.

Public preliminary hearings may also be held to decide jurisdictional questions. For example, the respondent might argue that the claim was filed out of time, or that the claimant did not have sufficient qualifying service for an unfair dismissal claim (which requires two years of continuous employment in most cases). These hearings can dispose of the claim entirely if the preliminary point succeeds.

Preparing for the Final Hearing

The final hearing is the trial itself. Preparation is where cases are won or lost. Both parties must prepare a joint bundle of documents, which typically runs to several hundred pages in a contested case. The bundle should include the contract of employment, relevant correspondence, the dismissal letter, grievance and appeal documents, payslips, and any other documents the parties intend to rely on.

Each party must also prepare written witness statements for every witness they intend to call. The witness statement stands as the witness's evidence in chief, which means the witness will not normally be asked to repeat everything orally. Instead, the tribunal reads the statement in advance, and the hearing focuses on cross-examination by the other side. The quality and completeness of the witness statement is therefore critical.

The Final Hearing

Final hearings take place at a tribunal hearing centre or, increasingly since the pandemic, by video link. The hearing is public. For unfair dismissal claims, a single Employment Judge usually sits alone. For discrimination and whistleblowing claims, the tribunal panel consists of a judge and two lay members drawn from employer and employee representative backgrounds.

The hearing follows a structured format. In unfair dismissal cases, the respondent (employer) typically presents its case first, because the burden is on the employer to show that the dismissal was for a fair reason and that it acted reasonably. In discrimination cases, the claimant goes first. Each side's witnesses are sworn in, their statements are taken as read, and the opposing side cross-examines them. The judge may ask questions as well. After all evidence is heard, both sides make closing submissions, either orally or in writing.

The tribunal then deliberates and either delivers its judgment orally on the day or reserves it and sends a written judgment within a few weeks. If the claim succeeds, a separate remedy hearing may be listed to determine the amount of compensation, unless the parties can agree terms.

Remedies

For unfair dismissal, the primary remedy is compensation, which consists of a basic award (calculated similarly to a statutory redundancy payment, based on age, weekly pay, and length of service) and a compensatory award (reflecting actual financial losses caused by the dismissal, capped at the lower of 52 weeks' pay or a statutory maximum, currently around 115,000 pounds). The tribunal may also order reinstatement or re-engagement, though these orders are rare in practice.

For discrimination, there is no cap on compensation, and the tribunal may also award compensation for injury to feelings under the Vento guidelines, which are updated annually. Aggravated damages may be awarded in exceptional cases.

Costs

The default rule in the employment tribunal is that each party bears its own legal costs regardless of the outcome. This is a significant difference from the civil courts, where the losing party usually pays the winner's costs. However, the tribunal may make a costs order against a party who has acted vexatiously, abusively, or disruptively, or whose claim or response had no reasonable prospect of success. Costs orders are relatively uncommon, but the risk should not be ignored, particularly where a party has been warned that its case is weak and presses on regardless.

Settlement at Any Stage

Claims can be settled at any point before or during the hearing. ACAS conciliation remains available throughout. Many cases settle through direct negotiation, judicial mediation (offered by the tribunal service in suitable cases), or at the door of the tribunal on the morning of the hearing. Any settlement must be recorded either as a COT3 agreement through ACAS or as a settlement agreement that meets the requirements of Section 203 of the Employment Rights Act 1996, including independent legal advice for the claimant.

Appeals

If either party is dissatisfied with the tribunal's judgment, an appeal lies to the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT), but only on a point of law. Disagreeing with the tribunal's factual findings is not a ground for appeal. The notice of appeal must be filed within 42 days of the date the written judgment was sent to the parties. Appeals from the EAT go to the Court of Appeal, and from there to the Supreme Court, though permission is required at each stage.

A party who believes the tribunal made an obvious error in its judgment may instead apply for reconsideration under Rule 71 of the Employment Tribunals Rules of Procedure 2013, which must be submitted within 14 days of the judgment being sent.

Conclusion

The UK Employment Tribunal provides an accessible forum for resolving workplace disputes, but its procedures demand careful attention to deadlines, forms, and evidence preparation. Whether you are bringing a claim or defending one, understanding each step of the process is essential. For claimants, the most important thing is to act quickly: contact ACAS before the three-month deadline expires, and take early legal advice if the case involves complex facts or multiple legal issues. For employers, responding to the ET1 within 28 days and taking the claim seriously from the outset can make the difference between a defensible position and a costly default judgment.