H and L v A City Council [2011] EWCA Civ 403 - Read judgment In a decision bound to stir up strong feelings, the Court of Appeal has found that disclosures made by a local authority to other organisations of a person’s conviction for a sex offence against a child and future disclosures proposed by the authority [...]
Archive for the ‘Employment’ Category
Disabled volunteers can be discriminated against
Posted in Art. 14 | Anti-Discrimination, Case summaries, Employment, European, International, tagged disability, Discrimination, European Court of Justice, Volunteers on January 28, 2011 | 3 Comments »
X v Mid Sussex Citizens Advice Bureau [2011] EWCA Civ 28 – Read judgment The Court of Appeal has ruled that disabled people are not protected by domestic or European legislation against discrimination when they undertake voluntary work. In this decision the specific question was whether volunteers at Citizens Advice Bureaus are protected from disability [...]
Discrimination at London’s first gay pub
Posted in Art. 14 | Anti-Discrimination, Case summaries, Employment, tagged gay rights on January 17, 2011 |
Lisboa v. Realpubs Ltd & Ors [2011] UKEAT 0224_10_1101 (11 January 2011) – Read judgment The Employment Appeals Tribunal (EAT) has ruled that a well-known gay pub’s strategy to encourage straight customers led to gay customers being treated less favourably, meaning that the a gay employee was forced to resign. The policies included seating straight [...]
“Legal parasites feeding on small businesses” or protectors of rights?
Posted in Employment, In the news, tagged employment tribunals on January 5, 2011 | 4 Comments »
The future of the employment tribunal system is under review by the coalition government, and the players who are to win and lose from the changes are setting out their positions. Depending on where you stand, the employment tribunal system is either a refuge for greedy lawyers and scurrilous claimants, or an essential bulwark against [...]
Legal aid cuts announced, significant reduction in funding of civil and family cases
Posted in Art. 2 | Right to life, Art. 6 | Right to Fair Trial, Criminal, Employment, Family, In the news, Medical, tagged legal aid cuts on November 15, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Updated x 2 | The lord chancellor Ken Clarke has announced plans for significant cuts to the legal aid system, which provides funding for legal representation to those who otherwise cannot afford it. The plans were largely as expected and will be open to consultation. Update: The MoJ has published full details of the plans: The [...]
Gurkha defeat in claim for equal pension rights
Posted in 1COR, Art. 14 | Anti-Discrimination, Case law, Case summaries, Employment, Immigration/Extradition, In the news, Margin of Appreciation, Pensions, Politics / Public Order, Protocol 1 Art. 1 | Peaceful enjoyment of property on October 18, 2010 | 1 Comment »
R (British Gurkha Welfare Society and ors) v Ministry of Defence [2010] EWCA Civ 1098 - read judgment The Court of Appeal has rejected a fresh attempt, based on Article 14 of the European Convention on Human rights (anti-discrimination), to obtain equal pension rights for Gurkhas who served in the British Army before 1997. The long-running [...]
Equality Act in force today, but ‘socialism’ clause looks doomed
Posted in Art. 14 | Anti-Discrimination, Employment, In the news, Politics / Public Order, tagged Equality Act, Equality Act 2010 on October 1, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Most of the Equality Act 2010 comes into force today. But whilst 90% of its provisions are now operating, the Act has been controversial and some key aspects may never see the light of day. The Equality and Human Rights Commission have published a fully featured online guide to the Act, a video, guidance on good [...]
Goodbye to the public sector equality duty?
Posted in Art. 14 | Anti-Discrimination, Employment, In the news, Politics / Public Order, Public/Private, tagged Equality Act 2010 on August 26, 2010 | 2 Comments »
The government is moving away from the wide-ranging public sector equality duty which was due to come into force in April 2011. The Equalities Office has announced a consultation on the public sector equality duty imposed by the Equality Act 2010. Reading the consultation document, it is clear that the government intends to delegate the [...]
British Airways strike and human rights – the union strikes back
Posted in Art. 11 | Freedom of Association, Case comments, Employment, tagged British Airways v Unite, CBI, Confederation of British Industry, emergency budget, human rights on June 21, 2010 |
British Airways Plc v Unite the Union [2010] EWCA Civ 669 (20 May 2010) – Read judgment Last month Unite won their appeal against an injunction obtained by British Airways in the High Court preventing their members from striking. The judgment has some potentially important implications for human rights, and in particular the right to [...]
Major new equality laws under threat from new government
Posted in Employment, In the news, tagged Coalition Government, Equality Act 2010 on June 18, 2010 |
The Equality Act 2010 may be a quiet addition to the Coalition Government’s repealing agenda as the Government Equality Office (GEO) withdraws the timetable for its implementation. According to Out-law.com, a spokesperson from the GEO said “An announcement on scheduling for implementation of the Equality Act will be made in due course” and also confirmed [...]
Religious versus other freedoms: the future of Article 9?
Posted in Art. 9 | Thought/Conscience/Religion, Case comments, Employment, Features, Religion, tagged human rights, Lord Carey, Mcfarlane, relgious freedom, Religion on May 10, 2010 |
McFarlane v Relate Avon Ltd [2010] EWCA Civ B1 (29 April 2010) – Read judgment or our previous post Case comment Lord Carey of Clifton, responding to Lord Justice Laws’ observations in MacFarlane, has called this latest dust-up about religion in the courts a “deeply unedifying clash of rights“. It is indeed a clash of [...]
High Court says Lord Carey “mistaken” on religious discrimination [updated]
Posted in Art. 6 | Right to Fair Trial, Art. 9 | Thought/Conscience/Religion, Case summaries, Employment, In the news, Religion, tagged employment law, Gary McFarlane, human rights, Lord Carey, religious discrimination on April 29, 2010 |
McFarlane v Relate Avon Ltd [2010] EWCA Civ B1 (29 April 2010) – Read judgment Gary McFarlane, a Christian relationship counsellor, has lost his application to appeal his Employment Appeal Tribunal decision in the High Court. Mr McFarlane was sacked by a marriage guidance service after he said he would not promote gay sex. He [...]
Claims against the Catholic Church: When is there vicarious liability, when is there a duty of care and are the situations different?
Posted in Case comments, Children, Damages, Employment, Religion, tagged Catholic Church, child protection, human rights, MAGA on April 16, 2010 |
We posted last week on issues of breach of duty in cases involving child protection, and mentioned the MAGA case as an important decision in extending the duty of care to priests in the Catholic church. The lawyers in the case have now written up the judgment. Case comment by Elizabeth-Anne Gumbel QC and Justin [...]





Benefits tourism in the EU – Analysis
Posted in Case comments, Employment, European, Features, In the news on March 25, 2011 |
The case of Patmainiece v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions was reported in an earlier post. Here we discuss the underlying rationale for the decision and ask whether the finding that the nationality requirement amounted to mere indirect discrimination was a correct “fit” with EU principles of free movement. Article 18 (now article [...]
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