header-logo header-logo

Home Login E-newsletter About us
06 March 2009 / Michael Wynn
Issue: 7311 / Categories: Features , Public , Terms&conditions , Employment
printer mail-detail

End of the line for temps?

© Copyright LexisNexis 2026. All Rights Reserved.

What are the implications of the recent Court of Appeal ruling on the status of agency workers? Michael Wynn investigates

The employment status of temporary agency workers, in a state of turmoil since the decision in Dacas v Brook Street Bureau (UK) Ltd [2004] EWCA Civ 217, [2004] All ER (D) 125 (Mar) has been clarified by the Court of Appeal in James v London Borough of Greenwich [2008] EWCA Civ 35, [2008] All ER (D) 54 (Feb). The court has confirmed that in cases of tripartite relationships involving agency workers, the question of whether a contract of employment is to be implied with the end user is to be decided on ordinary contractual principles and by the application of the necessity test outlined by Lord Justice Bingham in The Aramis [1989] 1 Lloyd’s Rep 213.

In his judgment, Lord Justice Mummery has settled any lingering uncertainties in the previous authorities, including his own observations in Dacas and those of Smith LJ in Cable and Wireless plc v Muscat

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

Read All
Sponsored by
Carey Olsen—Patrick Ormond

Carey Olsen—Patrick Ormond

Partner joinscorporate and finance practice in British Virgin Islands

Dawson Cornwell—Naomi Angell

Dawson Cornwell—Naomi Angell

Firm strengthens children department with adoption and surrogacy expert

Penningtons Manches Cooper—Graham Green

Penningtons Manches Cooper—Graham Green

Media and technology expert joins employment team as partner in Cambridge

NEWS
Read All
NLJ this week: Divorce ‘nuclear weapon’ freezes assets but entangles outsiders
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
NLJ this week: What counts as ‘rent’? Court says labour alone won’t do
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Your magistrates’ court needs you!
Thousands more magistrates are to be recruited, under a major shake-up to speed up and expand the hiring process
LexisNexis Legal Awards 2026—the winners!
The winners of the LexisNexis Legal Awards 2026 have now been announced, marking another outstanding celebration of excellence, innovation, and impact across the legal profession
NLJ this week: Freed but failed—justice system leaves the innocent empty-handed
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
Copyright © 2026 LexisNexis
back-to-top-scroll