Written by ET1 drafting · pleaded case strategy
Many Employment Tribunal claims begin with a workplace story. But an ET1 is not a diary, grievance bundle, appeal letter or witness statement. It is the pleaded starting point of the Employment Tribunal claim.
Publication snapshot
- The tribunal and respondent need to understand what legal complaints are being brought, against whom, based on which key facts, within what time limit, and for what remedy.
- Litigants in person are not expected to plead like barristers, but informality does not remove the need for structure.
- A weak ET1 can create rejection, amendment, strike-out, deposit-order and limitation risks.
- The essential case should be understandable from the ET1 and any clearly identified continuation particulars.
Why the ET1 matters
The ET1 is the claim form used to start most Employment Tribunal claims.
It tells the tribunal who the claimant is, who the respondent is, what Acas Early Conciliation certificate number or exemption is relied upon, what type of claim is being brought, what happened, and what remedy is sought.
That is not just administration. It affects whether the claim is accepted, whether it can sensibly be answered, whether the correct respondent has been named, whether Acas Early Conciliation has been dealt with, and whether the pleaded complaints fall within the tribunal’s jurisdiction.
A weak ET1 can create several problems. The claim may be rejected if required information is missing. It may be referred to a judge if it cannot sensibly be responded to. The tribunal may later require further information. Parts of the claim may face strike-out or a deposit order. A claimant may need to apply to amend. If limitation is close, correction may come too late.
The difference between a grievance and a tribunal claim
A workplace grievance usually tells the employer what the worker says went wrong. It may complain about a manager, a dismissal, a pay problem, sickness absence handling, unfair process, workload, bullying, discrimination, whistleblowing or retaliation.
A tribunal claim has a more specific function. It identifies legal complaints.
The ET1 needs to explain whether the claimant is alleging unfair dismissal, wrongful dismissal, unauthorised deduction from wages, breach of contract, direct discrimination, harassment, victimisation, failure to make reasonable adjustments, whistleblowing detriment, automatic unfair dismissal, or another tribunal claim.
The same facts can sometimes support more than one legal complaint. But the tribunal still needs to know which legal complaints are being pursued. A grievance can be useful background, but the ET1 should not simply reproduce the grievance and leave the legal analysis unstated.
Start with the legal claims, not the emotion
Emotion is understandable. Employment disputes can involve dismissal, financial pressure, ill health, humiliation, loss of confidence and damage to reputation. But the ET1 needs structure.
A practical starting point is to identify each claim in plain English:
This does not require technical perfection. It does require clarity. The next step is to set out the key facts for each claim. The tribunal does not need every workplace event from the beginning of employment. It needs the material facts that support the legal complaints.
Identify the respondent correctly
The respondent is the person or organisation against whom the claim is brought. Getting the respondent wrong can create serious procedural problems.
In many cases, the respondent will be the employer. But that is not always straightforward. The payslip, contract, offer letter, Companies House record, agency arrangement, group structure or internal HR documents may point in different directions.
In discrimination claims, individual employees may sometimes be named as respondents. In agency, outsourced, group company or trade union cases, respondent identity may need careful analysis.
The respondent name on the ET1 should be checked against the Acas Early Conciliation certificate. If there is more than one respondent, each respondent normally needs to be considered separately for Early Conciliation purposes.
Put the facts in date order
Tribunals work with issues, dates and evidence. A clear chronology helps.
Core employment dates
- When employment started.
- The job title and workplace.
- The date of dismissal, resignation or final act complained of.
- Grievance and appeal dates where relevant.
- Acas Early Conciliation notification and certificate dates.
- The date the ET1 is submitted.
Claim-specific dates
- Relevant pay periods for wages claims.
- Dates of alleged discriminatory acts.
- Dates of alleged protected disclosures.
- Dates of alleged detriments.
- Dates relevant to limitation or continuing acts.
The chronology should not become a full witness statement. The aim is not to describe every meeting, email and feeling. The aim is to make the claim intelligible.
Link each fact to a legal complaint
This is where many ET1s fail.
A claimant may write many pages of workplace history but never explain which facts support which claim. The reader is left to guess.
Example: unfair dismissal
“I was dismissed on [date]. I say the dismissal was unfair because [short reasons].”
Example: wages
“I was not paid [amount or type of pay] for [period]. I say this was due under [contract / agreed rate / payslip / statutory entitlement].”
Example: disability discrimination
“I rely on [condition] as a disability. I told [person] about it on [date]. I say the respondent failed to make reasonable adjustments by [act or omission].”
Example: whistleblowing detriment
“I say I made protected disclosures on [dates] to [people]. After those disclosures, [person] subjected me to [detriment]. I say that happened because I made the disclosures.”
The ET1 does not need to prove the case at the start. But it should identify the case.
Discrimination claims need particular care
Discrimination claims are often fact-sensitive. They also have different legal forms. Direct discrimination is not the same as harassment. Harassment is not the same as victimisation. Failure to make reasonable adjustments is not the same as unfair treatment generally.
Discrimination ET1 essentials
- The protected characteristic relied upon.
- The act or omission complained of.
- Who did it and when it happened.
- Why the claimant says it was connected to the protected characteristic.
- Whether any acts are said to form a continuing course of conduct.
Legal form of the claim
- Direct discrimination.
- Indirect discrimination.
- Harassment.
- Victimisation.
- Discrimination arising from disability.
- Failure to make reasonable adjustments.
- Comparator relied upon, if any.
It is not enough simply to say, “I was discriminated against.” The ET1 needs to explain how. That does not mean a litigant in person must master every legal label before submitting. But the facts must be clear enough for the tribunal and respondent to understand the complaint.
Whistleblowing claims need particular care
Whistleblowing claims also need careful drafting.
It is not enough to say, “I blew the whistle” or “I raised concerns.” The ET1 should identify the alleged protected disclosures.
Protected disclosure details
- What information did the claimant disclose?
- When was it disclosed?
- To whom was it disclosed?
- Was it oral, written, by email, in a grievance, in a report or in another form?
- What wrongdoing did the claimant believe the information tended to show?
- Why did the claimant believe disclosure was in the public interest?
Causation and detriment
- What detriment or dismissal followed?
- Who caused that detriment or dismissal?
- Why does the claimant say it happened because of the disclosure?
- Which disclosures are relied upon?
- Which detriments are linked to which disclosures?
This is particularly important where the claimant raised many workplace complaints over time. Not every complaint is a protected disclosure. Not every protected disclosure will necessarily be the reason for a detriment or dismissal.
Keep evidence separate from pleading
Evidence supports the case. Pleading identifies the case.
An ET1 should not be used as a full evidence bundle. It should not attach every email, grievance document, text message, policy, medical note and payslip unless there is a clear reason. Long attachments can obscure the claim rather than clarify it.
Continuation pages can be useful where the form does not provide enough space. If they are used, they should be concise, numbered and clearly labelled as continuation of the ET1 particulars. They should identify which section they continue.
Do not plead Acas Early Conciliation discussions
The ET1 should include the correct Acas Early Conciliation certificate number or a valid exemption where required. It should not set out the substance of Early Conciliation discussions.
There is a difference between saying, “The Acas Early Conciliation certificate number is [number],” and saying, “During Acas, the respondent offered X, refused Y, admitted Z, or behaved unreasonably.” The latter is usually not appropriate for the ET1.
Early Conciliation is a gateway step. It is not the tribunal claim itself. Acas does not represent the claimant or the respondent. It does not prepare the ET1, assess prospects or give legal advice.
What remedy are you asking for?
The ET1 should say what the claimant wants the tribunal to do.
The remedy will depend on the claim. It may include compensation, unpaid wages, holiday pay, notice pay, a basic award, a compensatory award, injury to feelings, interest, reinstatement, re-engagement, declarations or recommendations where available.
The remedy section does not need a final schedule of loss in every case. That may come later. But the claimant should identify the broad remedy sought.
Where reinstatement or re-engagement is sought, say so clearly. Where compensation is sought, explain the main heads of loss if known.
Common ET1 drafting mistakes
Structure mistakes
- Treating the ET1 as a workplace autobiography.
- Failing to link facts to legal claims.
- Using attachments badly or dumping documents.
- Missing key dates.
Legal-risk mistakes
- Naming the wrong respondent.
- Relying on labels without supporting facts.
- Assuming amendment will be easy.
- Trying to fix a missing claim later.
Practical ET1 checklist before submission
Gateway checks
- Have you used the correct claim form or online claim route?
- Have you identified the correct claimant details?
- Have you identified the correct legal respondent name and address?
- Does the respondent name match the Acas Early Conciliation certificate?
- If there is more than one respondent, have you checked the Acas position for each one?
- Have you calculated the time limit for each claim?
Pleading checks
- Have you identified each legal claim being brought?
- Have you included the key employment dates?
- Have you included the date of dismissal, resignation, deduction, detriment or act complained of?
- Have you put the key facts in date order?
- Have you linked each material fact to a legal complaint?
- Have you stated the remedy sought?
Discrimination and whistleblowing checks
- For discrimination claims, have you identified the protected characteristic, act complained of, date, actor and legal type of discrimination?
- For whistleblowing claims, have you identified the alleged protected disclosure, recipient, date, wrongdoing, public interest basis and detriment or dismissal link?
- Have you separated evidence from the pleaded case?
- If you use continuation pages, are they numbered, concise and clearly labelled?
Final submission checks
- Have you avoided pleading Early Conciliation discussions?
- Have you kept proof of submission?
- Have you kept a copy of exactly what was submitted?
- Have you obtained advice on limitation, jurisdiction, wrong respondent issues, amendment risk, settlement material, privilege, costs exposure or interim relief if relevant?
When to get legal review before submitting
Some ET1s need urgent review before submission.
That is especially true where limitation is close, the respondent identity is unclear, there are multiple respondents, the claim involves discrimination or whistleblowing, there may be an interim relief application, the claimant is relying on settlement discussions, there are privilege concerns, or the claimant wants to add claims not raised in Acas Early Conciliation.
Interim relief is particularly urgent in the limited categories where it is available. In qualifying dismissal cases, the deadline may be only seven days immediately following the effective date of termination. That is not a normal tribunal deadline and should not be left until the ET1 is otherwise ready.
Costs are also worth considering. Employment Tribunals do not operate like ordinary civil litigation costs, but unreasonable conduct, weak claims, non-compliance or procedural misuse can still create costs or preparation-time risks.
Conclusion
A strong ET1 is not necessarily a long ET1.
The best ET1s are usually clear, chronological and legally connected. They identify the claims, the respondent, the key dates, the material facts and the remedy sought. They do not ask the tribunal to excavate the case from a grievance bundle.
A claimant does not need to write like a lawyer. But they do need to tell the tribunal what legal case is being brought.
Legal disclaimer
This article is for general information only and is not legal advice. Limitation, jurisdiction, Acas Early Conciliation, respondent identity, amendment, interim relief, privilege, settlement material, costs exposure and remedies depend on the facts and dates of each case. If a deadline may be close or the respondent identity is unclear, obtain case-specific advice urgently.