Appeal No.	 EAT/916/98

EMPLOYMENT APPEAL TRIBUNAL
58 VICTORIA EMBANKMENT, LONDON EC4Y 0DS

	At the Tribunal
	On  1 July 1998

Before
THE HONOURABLE MR JUSTICE MORISON (P)
LORD DAVIES OF COITY CBE
MRS J M MATTHIAS

MR P DRAKE & MRS K DRAKE	APPELLANTS
T/A PROCUTS (A partnership)

MISS S D LOWES	RESPONDENT

Transcript of Proceedings

JUDGMENT

Revised

	APPEARANCES

For the Appellants	NO APPEARANCE OR REPRESENTATION BY OR ON BEHALF OF THE APPELLANTS	
For the Respondent	NO APPEARANCE OR REPRESENTATION BY OR ON BEHALF OF THE RESPONDENT	

	MR JUSTICE MORISON (PRESIDENT):   This is an appeal against an Industrial Tribunal’s persistent refusal to postpone a remedies hearing which is due to take place tomorrow.  The argument in favour of having a postponement is that there is an appeal lodged against the Tribunal’s substantive decision which we should hear and determine before the Industrial Tribunal resumes sitting and concluding their deliberations.

	If we were to accede to that argument there would then be the possibility of there being two appeals in relation to this one particular claim, because if we were to dismiss the appeal in due course and the remedies hearing took place with which the Appellants were dissatisfied, then one might find that we were having to deal with that second appeal.  That is not satisfactory.  

	It seems to us that the proper course is for the Industrial Tribunal to complete its deliberations on this case, including their deliberations on remedy.  We see no good reason for a postponement of that.  If the Appellants are dissatisfied with the decision of the Tribunal on the remedies hearing then of course they can appeal and that appeal will be taken together with their appeal against the original decision.  In that way we will have one appeal effectively against the Tribunal’s decision.  

	Accordingly we see no good reason why we should allow this appeal.  There has been nothing put before us to suggest that the decision of the Industrial Tribunal was other than one which they were entitled to make in the exercise of their discretion.  Accordingly the appeal will be dismissed.