Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Employment lawEquality, diversity and inclusionEmployment tribunalsDisability

DLA Piper defends tribunal discrimination claim in mental health case

by Kat Baker 2 Feb 2010
by Kat Baker 2 Feb 2010

DLA Piper will challenge a disability discrimination claim today after being accused of withdrawing a job offer from a claimant with a mental health condition.

The law firm will appear at the Employment Appeal Tribunal accused of retracting a job after the new recruit disclosed a previous history of depression during the recruitment process.

The unnamed claimant applied to the law firm for a professional support lawyer role in June 2008 and verbally accepted the job offer following a second interview. But after disclosing a history of mental health problems the claimant said the firm withdrew the offer on the basis of a “recruitment freeze”, Legal Week reported.

The disability discrimination claim was filed at the employment tribunal in September 2008 but was struck out in March 2009 after the tribunal ruled the claimant was not disabled under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. This ruling is now subject to appeal.

The claimant is also seeking to use European law to establish whether she was discriminated against on the basis of the firm’s belief that she was disabled.

The case is being funded by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Kiran Daurka, employment solicitor at Russell Jones, which is representing the claimant, said: “This is a very important case in the context of mental health discrimination as it is notoriously difficult to bring such conditions under the current definition of disability.

“Mental health conditions still carry a great deal of stigma and are often misunderstood. Claimants with such conditions are often portrayed as fraudulent.

“We hope the various points of appeal will assist in clarifying the law to make it simpler for claimants to overcome the first hurdle in their case in proving that they are in fact disabled and entitled to protection under the Disability Discrimination Act.”

DLA Piper declined to comment.

Avatar
Kat Baker

previous post
Default retirement age government consultation ends
next post
Pope attacks Equality Bill’s stand on gay and transsexual employment rights

You may also like

Former MP’s aide unfairly dismissed after whistleblowing

9 Aug 2022

HMRC looking to recoup £1.4bn from businesses’ use...

1 Aug 2022

How to create an inclusive workplace for religion

29 Jul 2022

Ministers release guidance to clarify UK employment status...

28 Jul 2022

Make menopause a protected characteristic, say MPs

28 Jul 2022

Underpayment not reported due to ‘fear and insecurity’

25 Jul 2022

‘I’m not an activist: I just want fairer...

25 Jul 2022

Why employers should collect workforce disability data

25 Jul 2022

More than a third of retailers have all-white...

21 Jul 2022

Supreme Court: Holiday pay for part-year staff should...

20 Jul 2022
  • 6 reasons why work-based learning is better than traditional training PROMOTED | A recent Fortune/Deloitte survey found that 71% of CEOs are anticipating that this year’s biggest business disrupter...Read more
  • Strengthening Scotland’s public services through virtual recruiting PROMOTED | This website is Scotland's go-to place for job seekers looking to apply for roles in public services...Read more
  • What’s next for L&D? Enter Alchemist… PROMOTED | It’s time to turn off the tedious and get ready for interactive and immersive learning experiences...Read more
  • Simple mistakes are blighting the onboarding experience PROMOTED | The onboarding of new hires is a company’s best chance...Read more
  • Preventing Burnout: How can HR help key workers get the right help? PROMOTED | Workplace wellbeing may seem a distant memory...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+