Tribunals fall into four categories according to their various functions, which are:
(1) to decide appeals from decisions taken by government departments;
(2) to determine various claims at first instance;
(3) to decide disputes arising as between individuals; and (4) to undertake various other functions.
Each of these categories will be examined in turn.
5.3.1 Tribunals and appeals from departmental decisions
Some of the best-known tribunals dealing with appeals from decisions of gov- ernment departments are the so-called Social Security Appeal Tribunals. These
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tribunals (which are described in more detail later) deal with a wide variety of social security disputes, eg about benefit. Another area where appeals go to a tribunal from a governmental decision is income tax. Decisions on liability to tax go to either the General Commissioners of Income Tax or the Special Commissioners of Income Tax, according to the technical nature of the dispute.
General Commissioners are required to have some knowledge of income tax legislation and are usually appointed from the ranks of magistrates, solicitors and accountants. The Special Commissioners constitute a tribunal of two or three members. They are appointed by the Treasury from among barristers and solicitors in the Inland Revenue and once appointed, sever any links with that department. Nevertheless, these adjudicators have attracted considerable criti- cism, eg by reference to their close links with the Inland Revenue, which under- takes organisation of appeals. A similar criticism was voiced by the Council on Tribunals in its Annual Report for 1993–94, in relation to Valuation Tribunals which deal with appeals about liability and valuation in relation to the Council Tax and non-domestic rating. In this case the criticism is aimed at the prepon- derance of representatives of county councils (as the ‘billing’ authorities) on the tribunals. A third example in this first category are the six Vaccine Damage Tribunals which deal with disputes arising from claims to the Secretary of State for Health for compensation arising from severe disablement caused by vaccina- tion. These tribunals are covered in more detail later in this chapter. Another tri- bunal which is covered in detail is the Transport Tribunal. Although it does not deal with decisions of a central government department, it has been seen that the local licensing body is susceptible to policy guidance from the Secretary of State for Transport.
5.3.2 Tribunals and ‘first instance’ claims
Some tribunals deal with claims at first instance. Reference has been made already to the Civil Aviation Authority and its responsibility for the licensing of civil air transport. The Authority deals with the licence applications initially and its decision may be appealed to the Secretary of State for Trade. Consequently, this opportunity and any earlier opportunities which may have been taken through policy guidance enable the Secretary of State to influence the direction of decisions. Another tribunal in this limited category is the Foreign Compensation Commission which adjudicates claims for compensation from British subjects, usually where their property has been requisitioned or dam- aged in another country. Where the government of that country agrees with the British government that compensation is payable, the sum agreed will be dis- tributed to claimants according to the decisions of the Commission.
5.3.3 Tribunals and disputes between individuals
The main feature of the tribunals whose task is to decide disputes between indi- viduals is that their decision relates to some statutory right or entitlement.
Perhaps the best-known tribunals in this context are the Industrial Tribunals, referred to previously in this chapter. Most of their work arises from disputes about unfair dismissal and redundancy payments as between employer and employee. Such disputes arise primarily by reference to the relevant employ- ment legislation which prescribes a general right not to be dismissed unfairly and a general right to compensation where an employee is dismissed by reason of redundancy. It is the tribunal’s task to decide whether or not a claimant comes within the terms of the statutory scheme or is excluded from protection and entitlement. Where the claimant is found to be within the terms of the statu- tory scheme it is the tribunal’s task to decide on the amount of redundancy pay- ment or compensation for unfair dismissal or, exceptionally, whether an unfairly dismissed employee should be reinstated. Other important tribunals in this category are the Rent Assessment Committees and Rent Tribunals whose tasks include the resolution of rent disputes between landlord and tenant or the parties to a restricted tenancy contract.
5.3.4 Additional functions of tribunals
The final category of tribunals includes those which have various other func- tions over and above their other, normal functions. This does raise the question:
what are those ‘normal’ functions? Is it possible to characterise tribunals as undertaking judicial functions similar to those of an ordinary court of law, or are they essentially investigatory bodies? Reference back to the definition at the opening of this chapter may be useful. Some tribunals, notably the Lands Tribunal and the Transport Tribunal, function like ordinary courts of law. Even where the formality of tribunal procedures does not permit this comparison, it is possible to conclude that most of such bodies are judicial and not investiga- tory so that they act as impartial adjudicators of evidence presented to them by the respective parties. Beyond such a normal judicial function, some tribunals do undertake additional functions. The Mental Health Review Tribunal, com- prising a number of separate tribunals throughout England and Wales, has operated as part of the scheme of the Mental Health Acts in order to review decisions whereby compulsory powers have been used to detain people for the treatment of mental disorder. Another facet of this tribunal has been its function in giving the Home Secretary advice on the recall to hospital of restricted patients who have been conditionally discharged or given leave of absence. A second example here is the Civil Aviation Authority, a regulatory authority which is responsible for air transport licensing, together with the maintenance and enforcement of safety standards. Beyond its judicial, tribunal function, the
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Authority also exercises important rule-making functions and this legislative function in the interest of air safety involves enforcement functions as well.