397.The Act does not prevent the civil courts from considering a claim that a pension scheme operates in a discriminatory manner. This section enables a court to strike out such a claim if it would be more convenient for an employment tribunal to deal with it, or to refer an issue relating to such a claim to an employment tribunal.
398.Employment tribunals have the specialist knowledge and procedures to handle claims relating to discrimination in the work context and this section gives a court power to refer such issues to a tribunal. This section reflects similar provisions in previous legislation.
An employee who is a member of a pension scheme sues his employer in court alleging the employer operates the scheme in a discriminatory manner. The court decides to refer the issue to an employment tribunal and postpones the case until the tribunal’s decision.