Employment dispute: judges call for level playing field
The Legal Ombudsman should have jurisdiction over non-lawyer employment advisers as part of work to improve consumer protection in the field, employment judges have suggested.
Responding to the Legal Services Board’s consultation paper Enhancing consumer protection, reducing regulatory restrictions, the Judiciary of the Employment Tribunals said its primary concern was the lack of consistency in the redress available to claimants given the wide range of people – most of whom are not regulated – who act as advocates before tribunals.
The judges complained that claimants, the judiciary and the effective operation of the Tribunal Service are all “impacted upon by poor-quality advice, preparation, representation and advocacy”.
