Dismissal law — the key developments

• When assessing unfair dismissal compensation, the employer’s ability to pay is irrelevant to the award size (Case 1).

• School holidays can count towards a year’s service (Case 2).

• Tribunals take a very restrictive approach when deciding whether it was reasonably practicable to bring a claim in time, especially when a claimant has sought legal advice (Case 3).

• Rejecting an offer of new employment by the old employer is not always a breach of the duty to mitigate losses resulting from a dismissal (Case 4).