Employment Tribunal Witness Familiarisation Training

• Are you going to be a witness at an employment tribunal?
• Are any of your staff due to be witnesses in employment proceedings?
• Have you or they ever given evidence at a tribunal before?
• Do you or they know what to expect?

Familiarising witnesses with the Employment Tribunal process and what to expect as a witness can be hugely valuable in the lead up to an Employment Tribunal hearing. Employment proceedings involving claims such as unfair dismissal, discrimination, and victimisation often lack clear documentary evidence which means that the performance of witnesses is critical to a successful outcome. Giving evidence is not as easy as it may seem and can easily be overwhelming if witnesses do not know what to expect.

As part of Birketts’ wider training offering, Birketts’ Witness Familiarisation Training will give witnesses the knowledge – and more importantly – the confidence to handle attending Employment Tribunal proceedings, which in turn will put you in a better position for achieving a successful outcome.

Course aims

During our interactive and engaging Witness Familiarisation Training session we will provide:

• The answers to the questions: How did we get here? Why would I be asked to give evidence? (with an emphasis on accountability of decision makers).
• An overview of an Employment Tribunal case including the role of ACAS.
• An overview of what happens at an Employment Tribunal hearing including the running order, who is in attendance/ their roles, the layout of the room.
• Practical tips as to how witnesses should best prepare for a hearing.
• Tips on preparing a witness statement: This would include a short exercise to emphasise the importance of decision makers having a command of all of the facts available to them.
• An understanding of the difference types of questioning styles used in tribunal proceedings.
• Experience with answering cross examination and re-examination questions with a case study and witness statement taken from mock Employment Tribunal proceedings.
• Guidance on how to deal with the unexpected at a tribunal hearing and confidence in carrying out the role of a witness.