Disability Discrimination/Costs

Thanks to Vanessa James of SA Law for preparing this case summary

A solid decision in the case of Sud v London Borough of Ealing, demonstrates the Court of Appeal's commitment to supporting lower tribunals in strident costs awards where the decision to order the Claimant to pay 50% of the Respondent's costs was upheld.

Also supported was the EAT's right to decide not to remit a case back to an employment tribunal where they had found they could deal with a finding around the nature of the disability effectively and efficiently given the papers before them. Although the Claimant had pleaded her disability was a physical impairment, the tribunal had raised the issue of whether it was in fact a mental impairment and in spite of this being an 'imperfect' decision at first instance the EAT were able to resolve it adequately without the need to remit.