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In the UK, employment tribunals deal with legal disputes between workers and employers.
In this guide, we’ll explain what a tribunal is, the process, and any costs involved with an employment tribunal. Employers will also discover why having HR insurance in place can help protect your business against the financial risks associated with defending claims.
What is an employment tribunal?
Employment tribunals make judgments about most employment disagreements.
However, some disagreements such as claiming for loss of breach of contract can be done through other courts. And in the instance where a case rises through courts, others such as the Employment Appeal Tribunal, Court of Appeal or Supreme Court may be involved.
There are many types of legal cases that can be heard in an employment tribunal, such as:
Different types of discrimination (such as age, disability, race, religion, or sex)
Unfair dismissal
Breach of contract
Redundancy
Wrongful dismissal
Whistleblowing
Equal pay
An employment judge usually makes the final decision of a tribunal. Depending on the complexity of the claim, the judge will either sit alone or as part of a panel.
The Fair Work Agency’s powers in employment tribunal claims
Since April 7th 2026, the Fair Work Agency (FWA) has the power to bring forward employment tribunal claims on behalf of workers, if they are unwilling to do so themselves. This gives all workers greater access to the justice system, including vulnerable adults who previously may have faced barriers.
The Agency’s powers within this process can include:
Providing workers with legal assistance including support and representation during hearings
Handling claims specifically related to statutory payments including unpaid wages, breaches of employment rights and labour laws overseen by the agency
Recovering the legal costs from businesses on behalf of workers if their claim is successful
This covers just part of the FWA's scope to enforce employment rights and labour laws in the UK. For more information download the FWA checklist from BrightHR.
Stages of the employment tribunal process
If an employee has made a dispute, employers will need to follow the correct employment tribunal process.
The key stages of the employment tribunal process includes:
1 - Early conciliation
This involves an independent Acas conciliator who discusses the claim with both parties and starts the before the tribunal process even begins. The aim of this is to actually avoid going to tribunal, if possible.
2 - Claim
On 1 October 2026, the time limit for bringing employment tribunal claims extends from three to six months. For breach of contract claims in Scotland, changes apply from 9 November 2026.
These extended time limits apply only to cases where the act, or failure to act, occurs on or after these dates.
For claims involving a series of acts or failures, the time limit extension will apply where the last act or failure occurs on or after these dates.
As an employer, you will:
Receive a copy of a claimant’s form (ET1), with details of the claim along with a letter from the tribunal.
You have a 28-day time limit (from the date noted on the letter) to provide your response.
It is crucial that you take note of your deadline date and do not miss this. If you fail to respond to a claim, the tribunal may continue without this, with a default judgement being made against you.
3 - Defence
The respondents must reply to the employment tribunal within 28 days from the day the ET1 was sent out.
4 - Assessment 
The employment tribunal will review the claim and decide what happens next. The judicial assessment will review both the claim and the defence. With an aim to achieve a settlement. If this can not be reached, the employment tribunal process continues often with a preliminary hearing.
5 - Potential preliminary hearing
Preliminary hearings are not essential but can and do happen, especially when dealing with a substantive hearing. They address concerns such as administrative issues and logistics and can even resolve some preliminary disputes.
Their prime focus in employment tribunals is case management. Where the judge will provide directions and orders for the relevant parties to prepare for the final hearing.
6 - Disclosure of witness documents/evidence
The process known as disclosure will occur before the final hearing. It requires both parties to disclose their own relevant documents to each other. It promotes transparency and allows both parties to understand the evidence before it is presented at the hearing.
7 - Hearing
This is where the employment tribunal will explain the claim, listen to evidence, and decide on the outcome. Before a hearing both parties will be given notice of the date and time.
Hearings are usually held within an employment tribunal office; however, more employment tribunal hearings take place via video call or phone due to the growing remote workforce.
Once the hearing has come to an end you will likely receive a decision within a few days or weeks. This will be sent directly to both parties as well as being published directly to the GOV.UK site.
8 - Remedy hearing
A remedy hearing seeks to decide on the compensation awarded to the claimant or other remedies required. This will take place if a claimant's case has been successful.
9 - Appeal 
After the hearing, the employment tribunal will instruct if there is an opportunity to appeal.
As an employer, you may wish to appeal if you do not believe the decision was made in line with the law. However, you cannot choose to appeal if you simply do not agree with the outcome. Appeals must be submitted to the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) within 42 days of the written reasons for the decision being received.
How long does an employment tribunal take?
Employment tribunals can take a long time, so it’s important to know the timescale of a claim.
The total length of an employment tribunal will depend on several factors:
The type of claim
The number of witnesses called to give evidence
The location of the hearing
How busy the tribunal is (this can affect availability)
What are the costs of an employment tribunal?
There is currently no fee to make a claim. However, there are additional costs that come with going to a tribunal. These can include:
Legal representation costs:
Both parties involved in the process will often hire legal representatives such as solicitors or barristers to assist with their case. The cost will depend on the complexity of the case, the length of the hearing, and the fee structure of the legal representative.
Costs orders from the tribunal:
As a result of the tribunal a judge or the panel can issue costs orders requiring one party to pay the other's legal costs.
However, this is rare and generally happens only if the losing party has acted or unreasonably, or if their claim or defence had no reasonable prospects of success. The maximum amount for a standard costs order is £20,000, unless the case is referred for detailed assessment, in which case there is no cap.
Witness costs:
If witnesses are required to attend, there may be travel, accommodation, or other associated costs of which the associated party will pay.
Compensation payments:
If a claim is successful, the losing party may be ordered to pay compensation.
For example:
Unfair dismissal claims include a basic award and a compensatory award (capped at £123,543 or 52 weeks' pay, whichever is lower, until 1 January 2027, when caps will be removed).
Discrimination claims have no upper limit on compensation and may include awards for injury to feelings. Although rare, some compensation payments reach millions. The highest compensation amount paid for a discrimination claim in the UK (As of September 2026) is £4.6 million which was paid by the London Borough Council of Hammersmith and Fulham.
Non-payment penalties
If the respondent (usually the employer) fails to pay compensation within 42 days, they may face penalties ranging from £100 to £20,000, along with being publicly named.
Get support to stay compliant and handle employee disputes
Without the right approach to employment law, you could easily find yourself in an employment tribunal. Many small businesses, simply can't afford to be in this position.
The BrightHR advice team can be reached instantly via the BrightHR app, as well as a 24/7 telephone line - so you can access the latest information and the reassuring voice of an employment law expert, whenever you need to.