Mr Hussain v Home Office — 2023

At this preliminary hearing, the tribunal found that the claimant was a disabled person within section 6 Equality Act 2010 at the relevant times because of depression and anxiety. The respondent had conceded disability arising from IBS and epilepsy, but the claimant relied on depression and anxiety for his reasonable adjustments claim. The tribunal accepted his evidence about the history and effects of depression and anxiety, including the likely effects without medication, and found substantial long-term adverse effects on day-to-day activities.

The direct disability discrimination complaint concerned alleged delay or failure to refer the claimant to occupational health and alleged failure to provide a reasonable adjustments passport. The tribunal held that, even taking the claimant's case at its highest, an alleged concern about the cost of adjustments would not amount to direct discrimination because of disability. That complaint was therefore struck out as having no reasonable prospect of success.

The tribunal refused to strike out the remaining direct discrimination and harassment claims. It held that the claims involved disputed factual issues about why the alleged discriminator acted as she did, and that the tribunal hearing the merits might need to consider the full course of conduct and any inferences from the evidence. The tribunal was also not persuaded that the relevant threshold was met in relation to an exchange on Teams, because further context would need to be considered.