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In Manor Oak (PMG) Limited v Kelly UKEATS/0070/08/B1, the Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) held that once misconduct is admitted, an employer is not required to investigate further in order for the dismissal to be fair.
Mr Kelly worked for Manor Oak garage as a service technician and MOT tester and had been employed by the garage for 36 years. He received a written warning in connection with an error while repairing a car. A few months later the garage discovered that he had passed a car through an MOT when it should have been failed. Mr Kelly accepted responsibility for his misconduct during a disciplinary hearing and was dismissed for negligence. His appeal against his dismissal was unsuccessful. Mr Kelly brought a claim for unfair dismissal and the Employment Tribunal found the dismissal unfair. Manor Oak garage appealed.
The EAT held that as Mr Kelly admitted the acts of misconduct, the garage had discharged the onus of showing that it genuinely believed that he had committed misconduct. As such, the garage had reasonable grounds on which to hold that belief and there was therefore no need to take investigations any further. The case was remitted for a fresh hearing before a different Tribunal.