header-logo header-logo

Age concern

istock_000020322761medium_4

European Directives strike again Spencer Keen & Monika Sobiecki investigate

The Supreme Court has delivered its judgments in the appeals of Seldon v Clarkson Wright and Jakes [2012] UKSC 16, [2012] All ER (D) 121 (Apr) and Homer v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police [2012] UKSC 15, [2012] All ER (D) 122 (Apr). These cases answer important questions about the justification of direct and indirect age discrimination, and in particular, how mandatory contractual retirement ages can be justified.

Seldon & direct discrimination

In Seldon, the appellant was a partner in a law firm. A succession of partnership deeds provided for the mandatory retirement of partners at 65. For financial reasons, Mr Seldon wished to work for three further years, and made a series of proposals with a view to doing so. These were all rejected by the other partners. He automatically ceased to be a partner, in accordance with the partnership deed, on 31 December 2006. The respondent firm claimed that his treatment was justified,

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

DWF—19 appointments

DWF—19 appointments

Belfast team bolstered by three senior hires and 16 further appointments

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Cadwalader—Andro Atlaga

Firm strengthens leveraged finance team with London partner hire

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Knights—Ella Dodgson & Rebecca Laffan

Double hire marks launch of family team in Leeds

NEWS
The Supreme Court issued a landmark judgment in July that overturned the convictions of Tom Hayes and Carlo Palombo, once poster boys of the Libor and Euribor scandal. In NLJ this week, Neil Swift of Peters & Peters considers what the ruling means for financial law enforcement
Bea Rossetto of the National Pro Bono Centre makes the case for ‘General Practice Pro Bono’—using core legal skills to deliver life-changing support, without the need for niche expertise—in this week's NLJ
In this week's NLJ, Steven Ball of Red Lion Chambers unpacks how advances in forensic science finally unmasked Ryland Headley, jailed in 2025 for the 1967 rape and murder of 75-year-old Louisa Dunne. Preserved swabs and palm prints lay dormant for decades until DNA-17 profiling produced a billion-to-one match
Small law firms want to embrace technology but feel lost in a maze of jargon, costs and compliance fears, writes Aisling O’Connell of the Solicitors Regulation Authority in this week's NLJ
Charlie Mercer and Astrid Gillam of Stewarts crunch the numbers on civil fraud claims in the English courts, in this week's NLJ. New data shows civil fraud claims rising steadily since 2014, with the King’s Bench Division overtaking the Commercial Court as the forum of choice for lower-value disputes
back-to-top-scroll