5. Prepare for your hearing

The Tribunal sends you a Confirmation of Hearing with the date, time and place for the hearing. It gives the deadlines for sharing information about evidence.

Collect your evidence

The Tribunal decides your claim based on the evidence at the hearing. The information in your application is not evidence.

You need to prove that:

• your employer acted in a way that goes against your human rights, and
• this caused you to lose money or be hurt in other ways

You prove this by bringing evidence to your hearing.

Your evidence can be:

• witnesses who say what they know about events that happened or how those events affected you
• documents, for example, letters or emails from your employer

You can also bring evidence in other formats. For example, you might have photographs, videos, or audio recordings that help prove your claim. The person who took the photograph or made the recording must come to the hearing.

Follow the rules

The Tribunal has detailed rules about what information you have to give about your evidence before the hearing. If you don't follow these rules, the Tribunal can refuse to consider your evidence or dismiss your claim without a hearing.

Ask for accommodation

You might need the Tribunal to do something so there won't be any barriers that discriminate against you in a way that goes against your human rights. This is called “accommodation“.

Contact the Tribunal if this applies to you. For example, you might need a language interpreter. Or you might need to start late or end early because you have to take care of a child.

At the hearing

You might have a lawyer or paralegal to represent you. If not, you present your own case.

If you are presenting your own case, it's a good idea to read the Human Rights Legal Support Centre's Applicant’s Guide to Preparing for a Hearing and the Tribunal's guide to preparing for a hearing. These guides will help you know what to expect and what to do at the hearing.

The Tribunal member doesn't usually decide the claim at the hearing. The Tribunal sends you the decision in writing later.