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O/S appeal from 2011!
I have an appeal for ESA which has been outstanding since 2011!
My client, who is new to me, is adamant that she heard this appeal in 2012 but has no paperwork - she threw it out because appeal was allowed and thinks she was placed into WRAG.
Client has never been paid any WRAG or SG on her ESA and after speaking to Benefits Centre they say she has been on appeal rate of ESA since 2011!
The BC state that client’s case has been part clerical so I am wondering if her appeal has been heard but documents lost? Although Tribunals Service have no record of appeal being heard!
I have asked for ALL documents/bundle etc and have received these this morning. BC did send case to District Judge for Direction but i have not yet seen response - have requested a copy of this again!
Do you have any ideas on next steps or come across this before?
Thanks in advance.
Well, once you confirm an appeal was lodged and that there is no evidence of a hearing, I suppose the next step is to get it urgently listed. Depending on who is responsible, you may wish to consider pursuing a complaint as well. Of course, if the appeal is heard and allowed, the backdated sum would be substantial.
Someone’s going to have to decide on the balance of probability what happened. If there are no documents relating to an appeal decision from HMCTS or JCP, then one can only conclude that the appeal was not heard.
Stranger things have happened. It’s possible even that the appeal WAS heard, but due to department error the claimant’s ESA wasn’t stopped and she wasn’t referred for a WCA.
Interesting case. Perhaps one to mention to the local MP once you’ve got the facts clear.
HM Courts & Tribunals Service will be able to tell at a glance whether the appeal has been heard; it will be marked either as not listable, ready to list or dormant. Ring them and ask.
If it’s not been heard you can seek direction that it’s heard urgently and I’ll bet good money you’ll see progress quite quickly.
If the appeal was heard sometime ago it is possible HMCTS cannot find trace. In my experience they do not keep any paper file for more than about 6 month following a hearing at which the appeal was ‘disposed of’ (an the paperwork is destroyed - not simply sent to remote storage).
It is also possible they cannot acess any database that records disposal (let alone outcome) after a relatively short period?
We have certainly had cases where we have had to supply copies of everything back to HMCTS!
If the appeal was heard sometime ago it is possible HMCTS cannot find trace. In my experience they do not keep any paper file for more than about 6 month following a hearing at which the appeal was ‘disposed of’ (an the paperwork is destroyed - not simply sent to remote storage).
It is also possible they cannot acess any database that records disposal (let alone outcome) after a relatively short period?
We have certainly had cases where we have had to supply copies of everything back to HMCTS!
Old appeals still show up on GAPS in my experience, whether or not they’ve destroyed the file is a different question.