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07 June 2007 / David Malamatenios
Issue: 7276 / Categories: Features , Employment
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Agents of change

Recent EAT decisions have accelerated changes to the legal status of agency workers, says David Malamatenios

You might be excused for having a feeling of déjà vu when first reading this article, because this is the latest in a series of articles which attempt to make sense of the employment status of agency workers. In that case, you might fairly ask, what is the point of this article? Well, the situation has at last started to become clearer (for employers at least) as a consequence of two recent decisions of the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) in Astbury v Gist [2007] All ER (D) 480 (Mar) and Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals NHS Trust v Kulubowila [2007] All ER (D) 496 (Mar), both of which were published on 28 March 2007.

AGENCY WORKERS

There is no point telling you what’s new without first telling you what’s old and how the law has come to be so confused on this issue.
The problem of agency workers is an old one. An agency worker works under a tri-partite

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MOVERS & SHAKERS

Walkers—Muriel Marseille

Walkers—Muriel Marseille

Ashurst's Chief Risk Officer joins Walkers

Excello Law—John Osborne

Excello Law—John Osborne

Northern family lawyer John Osborne joins Excello

mfg Solicitors—Rebecca Rogers, Kennedy Langley & Victoria Griffiths

mfg Solicitors—Rebecca Rogers, Kennedy Langley & Victoria Griffiths

Trio of promotions announced at Kidderminster law firm mfg Solicitors

NEWS
A sole director can conspire with their own company for the purposes of the tort of unlawful means conspiracy, the High Court has ruled in a judgment with potentially wide implications for business disputes
The Court of Appeal has reinforced that domicile depends on intention rather than residence alone, in a significant post-Brexit ruling on cross-border financial remedy claims
The Chancery Division's long history comes to an end this autumn as it is reborn as the Business and Property Division, prompting questions over whether the shake-up is really necessary
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) continues to show that failing to disclose regulatory issues can attract harsher consequences than the original misconduct itself
Rejecting a generous settlement can prove an expensive mistake, as two recent high-profile cases demonstrate
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