In the case of Aynge v Trickett the Employment Appeal Tribunal considered whether an unfair dismissal claim should fail because the unrepresented Claimant did not correctly identify her case as being one of constructive unfair dismissal.
In this case, the Claimant, Ms Aynge stated in her ET1 form that she had been dismissed but did not mention constructive unfair dismissal. It was conceded in evidence at the Tribunal that she had not been dismissed. The Tribunal concluded that, given that she had not alleged a constructive unfair dismissal claim, her claim could not succeed on the basis on which it was pleaded and must therefore be dismissed.
The EAT disagreed and held that the Claimant had sufficiently raised in her ET1 the essence of her case and this was enough. Even if she had not raised the essence of her case in the ET1, the Judge should not have dismissed the claim without considering whether to allow an amendment to Ms Aynge’s claim.