There was a time when a straightforward unfair dismissal claim might reach a hearing within six to nine months of being filed. That timeline has stretched considerably, and it's still stretching.
The scale of the backlog explains why. At the end of March 2026, 64,000 single claims sat open in the system, up 55% on the year before. Multiple claims added another 467,000 to the pile. Receipts have consistently outpaced disposals for well over a year now: the tribunal took in 50,000 single claims in 2025/26 while clearing only 26,000, a shortfall that simply accumulates quarter after quarter.
Several firms tracking tribunal timelines report typical claims now taking somewhere in the region of twelve to eighteen months from submission to a final hearing, with complex discrimination cases often running longer still. Layer on top of that the extension of Acas early conciliation from six weeks to up to twelve weeks, which took effect on 1 December 2025, and a claim can spend three months in conciliation before the tribunal clock even properly starts.
This has consequences that go beyond simple frustration at the wait.
Evidence degrades. Witnesses move on to new jobs, memories fade, and the manager who handled a dismissal eighteen months ago may struggle to recall specifics that seemed obvious at the time. If your documentation isn't solid at the point a decision is made, it won't get better with age.
Costs accumulate differently. Legal fees, management time and the ongoing distraction of an unresolved dispute now stretch over a much longer period than they used to. A claim that would once have resolved within six months of disruption can now run for the best part of two years.
Settlement incentives shift. With hearings pushed further out, both sides increasingly have a rational reason to settle early rather than commit to a lengthy, uncertain process. That's worth bearing in mind whether you're the one considering an offer or the one deciding whether to make one.
And the record-keeping burden is growing at the same time the wait is lengthening. Holiday pay records now need to be kept for six years, and tribunal time limits for most claims are set to extend from three months to six months around October 2026, giving a former employee twice as long to bring a claim in the first place. None of that helps a backlog that's already straining.
The practical response isn't to hope the backlog eases. It's to assume any dispute could take the best part of two years to resolve and build your evidence, documentation and case strategy accordingly from the moment a problem first surfaces, not eighteen months later when you're trying to remember what actually happened.