Adjourned appeals

2 appeal hearings on the same day with the same result.  DLA.  Both components (including HRM)
Appeals adjourned, tribunal to obtain medical records and reports going back several years (I think to the initial claim) and instructions for home visits for EMP reports, then the same panel to re-hear the appeals once this is done.  I have not seen this before and wonder why it has happened and what to advise the clients.  Please could you advise?  Thank you.

It is nothing out of the ordinary but it seems to be getting more common.  It all depends on the judge.  Some judges want reams of evidence.  Others are satisfied with less. There won’t be a direction that the re-hearings are re-listed for the same tribunal it will just be stated that the first tribunal are not necessarily excluded from being allocated to them.

I’ve seen quite a few like that over the last couple of years. In one case the DM revised their own decision on the basis of the reports released, thus avoiding the need to go back to the tribunal, although that’s probably rare.

It’s quite common up our way too, it seems to be getting harder for clients, and advisors, to get relevent evidence and this is usually the only route the Tribunal can take.

Thank you for your responses.  It means a long and expensive process gets longer and costlier doesn’t it!

Also happening here more and more often.

As has been said, it can work to the client’s advantage. A client of mine recently (unbeknown to me) requested a paper hearing which was adjourned for an EMP report as a result of which DLA revised the decision in her favour. Around here, at least, it doesn’t happen often with oral hearings (but generally in those cases we’ve already supplied sufficient evidence anyway).