Same-sex and single-parent adoption and religious discrimination: Page – Law & Religion UK

‘On 19 June 2019, the Employment Appeal Tribunal handed down two separate judgments relating to the same appellant, Mr Richard Page: Page v Lord Chancellor & Anor [2019] UKEAT 0304 18 1906 and Page v NHS Trust Development Authority [2019] UKEAT 0183 18 1906. The appeals related to Mr Page’s religious beliefs in relation to his position as a magistrate and as a Non-Executive Director of an NHS Trust, respectively; and the EAT dismissed the appeals in both cases. From the legal perspective, the two cases were not “linked” as such because there was no cross-referencing between them. However, the action taken by the Lord Chancellor’s Department resulted, indirectly, in action being instituted by the NHS, and the following note relates to both judgments.’

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Law & Religion UK, 24th June 2019

Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com

JusticeWatch: Growing ‘justice gap’ in discrimination cases – Legal Voice

‘Victims of discrimination were being denied access to justice and offenders going unchallenged as a result of a ‘failing’ legal aid system, as reported in the Justice Gap.’

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Legal Voice, 21st June 2019

Source: legalvoice.org.uk

SDT president: Concerns over civil standard of proof “misplaced” – Legal Futures

‘Concerns over the decision of the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal (SDT) to move from the criminal to the civil standard of proof are “misplaced”, the tribunal’s president has said.’

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Legal Futures, 26th June 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Bullied bisexual prison officer unlikely to work again, tribunal finds – The Guardian

‘A bisexual prison officer is unlikely to ever work again because the harassment and discrimination he suffered at work has permanently damaged his health, an employment tribunal has found.’

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The Guardian, 19th June 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

MoJ denies sex offender research ‘cover-up’ – BBC News

‘The government has denied covering up research that found a treatment programme for sex offenders in England and Wales increased reoffending. Kathryn Hopkins’s study was given to officials in 2012, but the flagship scheme was only scrapped in 2017. She has told an employment tribunal that she was “bullied” by the Ministry of Justice after producing the report.’

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BBC News, 18th June 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

NDAs: MPs call for ban on ‘gagging clauses’ over ‘cover-up’ fears – BBC News

‘MPs have called for a ban on “gagging clauses” used by employers to silence allegations of unlawful discrimination and harassment.’

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BBC News, 11th June 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Medical watchdog GMC needs to regain trust of doctors, finds review – The Guardian

‘The General Medical Council must fundamentally reform to regain the trust of the doctors it regulates and end their “toxic fear” of reprisals if they make mistakes, says a hard-hitting report.’

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The Guardian, 6th June 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Tribunal verdict quashed after judge fell asleep twice during proceedings – Daily Telegraph

Posted June 5th, 2019 in appeals, cross-examination, employment tribunals, judges, news by sally

‘A judge who repeatedly fell asleep during a case has prompted an appeal court to overturn his verdict.’

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Daily Telegraph, 4th June 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Police recruit rejected because he was a white heterosexual male joins force which discriminated against him – Daily Telegraph

‘A university graduate will finally get to “follow in his father’s footsteps” as he joins the same police force which rejected him for being a white heterosexual man.’

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Daily Telegraph, 30th May 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Not discrimination to pay male officers less for shared parental leave than female officers on maternity leave – UK Police Law Blog

‘The Court of Appeal in (1) Capita Customer Management Ltd v Ali & (2) Chief Constable of Leicestershire v Hextall [2019] EWCA Civ 900, has overturned the Employment Appeal Tribunal and held that employees do not unlawfully discriminate against men when when paying them less for shared parental leave than they pay women when taking enhanced maternity pay as part of maternity leave. Such claims are not sex discrimination claims but equal terms claims, to be brought under the Equal Pay Act 1970, which are bound to fail because they relate to terms of work affording special treatment to woman in connection with pregnancy of childbirth. An appeal to the Supreme Court is possible.’

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UK Police Law Blog, 29th May 2019

Source: ukpolicelawblog.com

Officials altered records in bisexual prison officer case, judge says – The Guardian

‘An investigation is under way after government officials altered and redacted documents in an employment tribunal case involving a bisexual prison officer, the Guardian has learned.’

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The Guardian, 28th May 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Oxbridge can force old professors to retire in order to boost diversity, tribunal ruling suggests – Daily Telegraph

‘Oxford and Cambridge universities can force old professors to retire in order to boost diversity, a tribunal ruling suggests.’

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Daily Telegraph, 22nd May 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Law firm “sacked staff member by WhatsApp”, tribunal finds – Legal Futures

‘A small law firm sacked its administrator by sending him a brief WhatsApp message – and then backdated his P45 to support an argument that he was actually fired earlier and so his claim was out of time, an employment tribunal has found.’

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Legal Futures, 22nd May 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Employment Appeal Tribunal hears appeal from Christian ex-magistrate dismissed over adoption comments – Local Government Lawyer

‘The Employment Appeal Tribunal is this week hearing an appeal from a former magistrate who was removed from the judiciary after he expressed the view that it was in a child’s best interests to be raised by a mother and a father.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 15th May 2019

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Solicitors call for more full-time employment judges – Litigation Futures

‘Employment tribunals are being forced to rush in part-time judges in order to try to clear the growing backlog of cases waiting to be heard, a specialist law firm has claimed.’

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Litigation Futures, 15th May 2019

Source: www.litigationfutures.com

Article 9 ECHR & promotion of religious views by employees: Kuteh – Law & Religion UK

‘ In Kuteh v Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust [2019] EWCA Civ 818, the Claimant was a nursing sister employed by the Trust. She was a “committed Christian”; and in March and April 2016, staff in her department told her superiors that patients had been complaining that when they were being assessed by Mrs Kuteh she had been raising matters of religion and faith with them. One patient complained that she had been asked “what she thought Easter was about”, another that he had been asked what he thought being a Christian meant and a third, about to undergo major surgery for bowel cancer, that she had told him that if he prayed to God he would have a better chance of survival. In the end, she was dismissed: she lost her claim in the Employment Tribunal and, in an unreported judgment, the Employment Appeal Tribunal held that the grounds for an appeal to it were unarguable and dismissed her appeal from the ET’s decision[1]. [For the detailed background, see Mrs S Kuteh v Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust (England and Wales: Unfair Dismissal) [2017] UKET 2302764/2016.]’

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Law & Religion UK, 14th May 2019

Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com

Police officer sacked for punching suspect is reinstated – BBC News

‘A police sergeant dismissed for repeatedly punching a suspect in the head while he was detained in custody has been reinstated.’

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BBC News, 8th May 2019

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Tribunal rejects law firm’s bid to strike out disability claim – Legal Futures

‘An employment tribunal has said it would be “wholly inappropriate” to strike out a disability discrimination claim against a law firm from a legal secretary suffering from depression.’

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Legal Futures, 2nd May 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Solicitor’s discrimination claim to continue despite Twitter campaign – Legal Futures

‘US firm Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison has failed to strike out an employment tribunal claim brought by a former corporate lawyer in its London office, after a tribunal found her not responsible for a friend’s Twitter campaign against it.’

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Legal Futures, 11th April 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Victim of senior partner’s f-word tirades awarded £47,000 – Legal Futures

‘A paralegal subjected to f-word tirades by the senior partner of a London law firm has been awarded £47,000 by an employment tribunal – less than 5% of the value of her claim.’

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Legal Futures, 5th April 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk