The case concerned Antoinette Costantine, a former secretary at the embassy in London who claimed discrimination and harassment on the basis of religious belief. The embassy countered that it was protected by the State Immunity Act 1978.
Ruling in The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia (Cultural Bureau) v Costantine [2025] UKSC 9 last week, however, the court held the tribunal judge did not err in law when they found Costantine’s employment was not an exercise of sovereign authority and immunity did not apply because her job was administrative with no access to confidential information.
The embassy appealed to the Court of Appeal but sought an adjournment then declined to attend.
The Supreme Court held the Court of Appeal, which dismissed the embassy’s appeal for non-appearance, failed in its duty to consider whether state immunity applied where the embassy did not attend and was not entitled simply to dismiss the appeal.
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