The draft Employment Tribunals Act 1996 (Composition) Order 2012 has been published and is expected to come into force on 6th April 2012. This Order will enable Employment Judges to sit alone in unfair dismissal cases.
The current position is that unfair dismissal cases are heard by an Employment Judge and two lay members. The draft Order is intended to speed up the process and reduce costs in the Tribunal system. It is estimated that the cost saving will be over £3 million per year in lay members fees and other associated costs