Indirect race discrimination against Bar Council fails
An attempt to prove that a rule requiring chambers to fund pupillages led to indirect race discrimination against an applicant, has failed in the Employment Appeal Tribunal.
Iteshi v The Bar Council [2012] UKEAT 0161/11/3003 concerned a black Nigerian barrister who was unable to secure a pupillage and was prevented by professional rules from securing an unfunded pupillage. He claimed the rule on funded pupillages, which was introduced in 2003 to help non-wealthy applicants into the profession and was thought to be in the interests of ethnic minority applicants, indirectly discriminated against black Africans.
The EAT heard that fewer black Africans secured pupillage in the years 2004 to date than did in 2000/2001, but that there were not enough statistics for the tribunal to reach a conclusion. The appeal was dismissed.
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