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13 September 2024 / Ian Smith
Issue: 8085 / Categories: Features , Employment , Discrimination , Equality , Tribunals
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Employment law brief: 13 September 2024

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Basking in the dog days of summer, Ian Smith gets his teeth into recent case law involving bad blood, hearsay & a disappearing witness
  • Case one deals with discrimination law, the burden of proof and the drawing of inferences.
  • Case two relates to case management and equal pay.
  • Case three is on the topic of costs: the relevance of judicial mediation and assessment.
  • And case four demonstrates that there is no general requirement of corroboration of evidence in an ET.

As we await the publication of the new government’s promised Employment Rights Bill, the dog days of the fag end of the summer produced four cases worth considering. The first is a potentially important reconsideration of the case law on the burden of proof and the drawing of inferences in discrimination cases. This is followed by three quite short cases on aspects of employment tribunal (ET) procedure which all make precise but significant points.

Discrimination law

Unsurprisingly, the application of the Equality Act 2010, s 136

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Bellevue Law—Lianne Craig

Workplace law firm expands commercial disputes team with senior consultant hire

EIP—Rob Barker

EIP—Rob Barker

IP firm promotes patent attorney to partner

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

Muckle LLP—Ryan Butler

Banking and restructuring team bolstered by insolvency specialist

NEWS
A High Court ruling involving the Longleat estate has exposed the fault line between modern family building and historic trust drafting. Writing in NLJ this week, Charlotte Coyle, director and family law expert at Freeths, examines Cator v Thynn [2026] EWHC 209 (Ch), where trustees sought approval to modernise trusts that retain pre-1970 definitions of ‘child’, ‘grandchild’ and ‘issue’
Fresh proposals to criminalise ‘nudification’ apps, prioritise cyberflashing and non-consensual intimate images, and even ban under-16s from social media have reignited debate over whether the Online Safety Act 2023 (OSA 2023) is fit for purpose. Writing in NLJ this week, Alexander Brown, head of technology, media and telecommunications, and Alexandra Webster, managing associate, Simmons & Simmons, caution against reactive law-making that could undermine the Act’s ‘risk-based and outcomes-focused’ design
Recent allegations surrounding Peter Mandelson and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor have reignited scrutiny of the ancient common law offence of misconduct in public office. Writing in NLJ this week, Simon Parsons, teaching fellow at Bath Spa University, asks whether their conduct could clear a notoriously high legal hurdle
A landmark ruling has reshaped child clinical negligence claims. Writing in NLJ this week, Jodi Newton, head of birth and paediatric negligence at Osbornes Law, explains how the Supreme Court in CCC v Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust [2026] UKSC 5 has overturned Croke v Wiseman, ending the long-standing bar on children recovering ‘lost years’ earnings
A Court of Appeal ruling has drawn a firm line under party autonomy in arbitration. Writing in NLJ this week, Masood Ahmed, associate professor at the University of Leicester, analyses Gluck v Endzweig [2026] EWCA Civ 145, where a clause allowing arbitrators to amend an award ‘at any time’ was held incompatible with the Arbitration Act 1996
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