EAT Race Discrimination : Direct
Detriment
Discrimination by other bodies
At a pre-hearing review an Employment Judge held that the Employment Tribunal had no jurisdiction to determine a doctor’s claims of race discrimination and harassment. She held that the Medical Act 1983 and judicial review provided ‘an appeal or proceedings in the nature of an appeal’ from such acts within the meaning of the Equality Act 2010 section 120(7) which would prevent the ET from hearing claims based on those acts. The acts complained of, although unparticularised in the judgment and not sufficiently by the Claimant were alleged to have occurred before his name was struck from the Register of Medical Practitioners and before he was made subject to immediate suspension. The EJ erred in replying on a right of appeal under the Medical Act 1983 as none was provided in relation to such acts. Further the EJ erred in deciding that judicial review proceedings were ‘proceedings in the nature of an appeal’ without identifying the acts complained of and considering whether judicial review would be available to challenge them. Further the EJ erred in relying on the obiter dictum of the EAT in paragraph 31 of the judgment in Tariquez-Zaman v GMC UKEAT/0292/06/DM UKEAT/0517/06/DM as holding that judicial review proceedings were proceedings in the nature of an appeal within the meaning of EA section 120(7) whose availability to the Claimant excluded the jurisdiction of the ET.
Appeal allowed. Case remitted to a different Employment Judge to consider whether the jurisdiction of the Employment Tribunal to hear the Claimant’s claims is excluded by Equality Act 2010 section 120(7), whether the claims were presented in time and whether the Claimant can pursue his claims against individual Trustee Members of the GMC.
The difference between EA section 53(2) and Race Relations Act 1976 section 12(1) considered.
Slade J
[2012] UKEAT 0078 – 12 – 1402
Bailii
Race Relations Act 1976 12(1), Equality Act 2010 120(7), Medical Act 1983
England and Wales
Employment, Discrimination
Updated: 31 October 2021; Ref: scu.470990
