Case law   re   non attendance @ FTT re PIP

Is anyone aware   of any specific   case   law re a   an appellants refusal to attend @ a FTT re PIP?

I do not   want the hearing to adjourn on the   basisi the appellant   has the   oppurtunity to   attend

Thanks

Are they likely to ever attend? I would have thought if the answer is no it would have to be a paper hearing instead…

Sorry, are you saying that your client wants the hearing to proceed in their absence?

The tribunal can proceed in the absence of a party if satisfied that reasonable efforts were made to inform the party of the hearing and it is in the interests of justice to proceed (see rule 31).

The interests of justice require the tribunal to adopt fair procedures and to give parties an oppurtunity to engage in proceedings - but they also require matters to be progressed with reasonable speed and efficiency.

If your client is simply not going to attend any hearing (either because he can’t, won’t or has no useful evidence to give) or can’t attend that particular hearing but would rather have a quicker decision than an adjournment - I’d suggest writing to the Tribunal in advance saying as much. If the Tribunal are satisfied that its an informed and reasonable decision, it would be surprising if they didn’t accept it. You can’t really ask for a set aside after that.

However I would talk about it carefully with your client - in ESA/PIP style appeals, there is no substitute for the claimant attending.