Category: equality

Liability of police misconduct hearings for discrimination – UK Police Law Blog

Posted November 10th, 2017 in disciplinary procedures, equality, immunity, news, police by tracey

‘The Supreme Court has held in P v Commissioner of Police of the Metropolis [2017] UKSC 65, that police misconduct hearings no longer benefit from judicial immunity in respect of discrimination claims. They also held that the Chief Constable is vicariously liable for the discriminatory acts of such panels. However, the decision related to an internal panel under the old regime when a misconduct hearing panel was chaired by an assistant chief constable.’

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UK Police Law Blog, 10th November 2017

Source: ukpolicelawblog.com

‘No coloureds’ landlord taken to court by UK equality watchdog – The Guardian

Posted November 8th, 2017 in equality, injunctions, landlord & tenant, news, race discrimination by tracey

‘The UK equality watchdog is seeking an injuction against buy-to-let mogul Fergus Wilson after he told his letting agent to ban “coloured” tenants because they left curry smells in his properties.’

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The Guardian, 8th November 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

Regulators can be taken to employment tribunals, Supreme Court rules – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted November 6th, 2017 in appeals, complaints, employment tribunals, equality, judgments, news, solicitors, Solicitors Regulation Authority, statutory interpretation, Supreme Court, wrongful dismissal by tracey

‘Solicitors claiming wrongful dismissal can potentially hold the Solicitors Regulation Authority to account in the employment tribunal following a Supreme Court judgment which clarifies rules on bringing complaints against qualifications bodies. The long-running case Michalak v General Medical Council and others centred on a discrimination complaint brought against the medical regulator by Dr Ewa Michalak. The SRA intervened in support of the GMC.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 3rd November 2017

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Black former Met officer wins right to sue for discrimination – The Guardian

Posted October 25th, 2017 in disability discrimination, disciplinary procedures, dismissal, EC law, employment, equality, London, news, police, post-traumatic stress disorder, Supreme Court by michael

‘Supreme court ruling hailed as gamechanger by Race4Justice, which says professionals in many fields will now get full protection of equality legislation.’

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The Guardian, 25th October 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

A Guide to using Statistics in Employment and Equality Litigation – Cloisters

Posted October 20th, 2017 in civil servants, employment, equality, news, race discrimination, remuneration, statistics by sally

‘Numbers can be anathema to many lawyers. Yet statistics are a useful weapon in the litigation armoury. This week the Government released its Race Disparity Audit which provides a wealth of such statistics and is a timely reminder of the role that they can play in litigation. Tom Gillie discusses three recent examples of how statistics can be used to advance successful arguments in employment litigation and broader equality context, for example, in relation to the provision of goods, facilities and services.’

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Cloisters, 12th October 2017

Source: www.cloisters.com

Black and Muslim prisoners suffer worse treatment, study finds – The Guardian

Posted October 20th, 2017 in equality, mental health, news, prisons, race discrimination, religious discrimination by sally

‘Black and Muslim offenders are more likely to be badly treated in prison, leading to poorer outcomes and mental health concerns, research has found.’

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The Guardian, 19th October 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

Black or Muslim inmates twice as likely to have negative experiences in prison, report finds – The Independent

Posted October 19th, 2017 in equality, news, prisons, race discrimination, racism, reports by tracey

‘Black and Muslim prisoners are twice as likely to have negative experiences in jail than white inmates – with the figure nearly four times as high for black Muslims – new research has revealed.’

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The Independent, 19th October 2017

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Islamic Faith School’s Gender Segregation Ruled Unlawful – RightsInfo

Posted October 16th, 2017 in education, equality, gender, Islam, news, school children, sex discrimination by sally

‘An Islamic faith school which has a policy of separating girls and boys has been told the rules are unlawful.’

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RightsInfo, 13th October 2017

Source: rightsinfo.org

UK gender inequality as bad as 10 years ago, EU league table shows – The Guardian

Posted October 12th, 2017 in education, employment, equality, gender, news, reports, sex discrimination by sally

‘Britain has made zero progress in tackling inequality between the sexes in the past decade and lags behind Sweden, Denmark, Finland, the Netherlands and France in the EU’s latest gender equality league table.’

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The Guardian, 11th October 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

Bar to consult on scrapping LGBT reporting restrictions – Law Society’s Gazette

Posted October 9th, 2017 in barristers, disclosure, diversity, equality, news, regulations, reporting restrictions by sally

‘The Bar Standards Board is considering dropping a rule that allows one barrister to prevent an entire set from revealing the sexual orientation and religious beliefs of its members.’

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Law Society's Gazette, 6th October 2017

Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk

Can marriage officers refuse to marry same-sex couples? – OUP Blog

Posted October 9th, 2017 in civil servants, equality, human rights, marriage, news by sally

‘Freedom of religion and same-sex equality are not inherently incompatible. But sometimes they do seem to be on a collision course. This happens, for instance, when religiously devout marriage officers refuse to marry same-sex couples. In the wake of legal recognition of same-sex marriage around the world, states have grappled with civil servants who cannot reconcile their legal duties with their religious beliefs.’

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OUP Blog, 9th October 2017

Source: blog.oup.com

Give the next generation of women a hand up, QC urges female barristers – Legal Futures

Posted October 9th, 2017 in barristers, equality, lectures, news, queen's counsel, women by sally

‘Female barristers need to actively encourage and mentor the next generation of women at the Bar amid the continuing difficulties of achieving equality, a leading silk said last week.’

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Legal Futures, 9th October 2017

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Why Isn’t Fat Shaming Officially Discrimination in Law? – Rightsinfo

Posted September 18th, 2017 in disability discrimination, EC law, equality, human rights, legislation, news by tracey

‘When people complain about mistreatment at work or school based on their weight, many of us feel great sympathy, so why isn’t weight discrimination unlawful in the same way as racism, for example, or gender discrimination?’

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Rightsinfo, 18th September 2017

Source: rightsinfo.org

Grenfell Tower fire: lawyers warn Theresa May she may be breaching inquiry laws – The Guardian

Posted September 4th, 2017 in equality, fire, inquiries, legislation, London, news, statutory duty by sally

‘Lawyers acting for the family of one of the victims of the Grenfell Tower disaster have written to the prime minister, warning her that she may be in breach of key laws relating to the public inquiry.’

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The Guardian, 4th September 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com

R (UNISON) v Lord Chancellor – Blackstone Chambers

Posted August 22nd, 2017 in appeals, employment tribunals, equality, fees, news, Supreme Court, trade unions by sally

‘The Supreme Court today [30 July] allowed UNISON’s appeal and held that fees imposed in respect of proceedings in employment tribunals and the Employment Appeal Tribunal are unlawful because of their effects on access to justice.’

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Blackstone Chambers, 30th July 2017

Source: www.blackstonechambers.com

Supreme Court to hear appeal on opposite-sex civil partnerships – Law & Religion UK

Posted August 22nd, 2017 in appeals, civil partnerships, equality, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘S 1(1) Civil Partnership Act 2004 stipulates that only a same-sex couple may conclude a civil partnership: “A civil partnership is a relationship between two people of the same sex…”. Rebecca Steinfeld and Charles Keidan have sought judicial review of that provision and have been unsuccessful both at first instance and in the Court of Appeal.’

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Law & Religion UK, 22nd August 2017

Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com

A radical reconsideration of the burden of proof: Efobi v Royal Mail Group Ltd (EAT) – Cloisters

Posted August 22nd, 2017 in appeals, burden of proof, employment tribunals, equality, interpretation, news, race discrimination by sally

‘In an important decision on the correct interpretation of the burden of proof provisions in the Equality Act 2010, Efobi v Royal Mail, Tom Coghlin and Navid Pourghazi successfully appealed against an employment tribunal’s decision to dismiss a claimant’s race discrimination complaints.’

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Cloisters, 14th August 2017

Source: www.cloisters.com

The Supreme Court, ET fees and access to justice: Stopping the government in its tracks – Cloisters

Posted August 22nd, 2017 in appeals, employment tribunals, equality, fees, news, regulations, Supreme Court by sally

‘Caspar Glyn QC, Schona Jolly QC and Sian McKinley consider the implications of today’s seismic decision from the Supreme Court which ruled that ET fees are unlawful: R (on the application of UNISON) v Lord Chancellor [2017] UKSC 51.’

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Cloisters, 26th July 2017

Source: www.cloisters.com

The most famous case on the rule of law for a generation? Employment tribunal fees declared unlawful – Hardwicke Chambers

Posted August 22nd, 2017 in appeals, employment, employment tribunals, equality, fees, news, Supreme Court, trade unions by sally

‘The Supreme Court have, this morning, handed down Judgment in the case of R (on the application of UNISON) v Lord Chancellor [2017] UKSC 51, more commonly known as ‘the appeal against Employment Tribunal fees’.’

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Hardwicke Chambers, 26th July 2017

Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk

Heterosexual couple take civil partnership case to Supreme Court – BBC News

Posted August 22nd, 2017 in appeals, civil partnerships, equality, news, Supreme Court by sally

‘A heterosexual couple who want to enter a civil partnership instead of getting married have been granted the right to take their case to the Supreme Court.’

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BBC News, 22nd August 2017

Source: www.bbc.co.uk