both in person For the v Respondent — 2023

Both claimants, Mr Haydari and Mr Naraghi, complained about comments made at a dinner in London on 9 June 2022 attended by Narvar employees and Mr Richard Terry-Lloyd, the chief revenue officer of Narvar, Inc. The tribunal accepted that Mr Terry-Lloyd said, in the claimants' presence, 'Fuck Iranians. Fuck Iraqis.' and later referred to Mr Naraghi as 'Iranian Tom'. It also recorded that the claimants were of Iranian background and that the remarks were unwelcome.

The central issue was whether Narvar UK Ltd was responsible for Mr Terry-Lloyd's conduct. The tribunal found he was employed by Narvar, Inc., not the respondent, and that there was no evidence of a contract with, or authority from, Narvar UK Ltd sufficient to make him its agent. It rejected third-party liability on the facts found, concluding that the respondent could not reasonably have anticipated the conduct or failed to act in a discriminatory way. The respondent's application to anonymise Mr Terry-Lloyd was refused.

If liability had attached, the tribunal said the comments were unwanted, racially specific and capable of amounting to harassment and, alternatively, direct race discrimination. It found the burden of proof would have shifted and that no explanation was advanced to rebut the case. The tribunal also said the section 109(4) reasonable steps defence was not made out on the evidence about training. The whistleblowing detriment complaints under section 47B ERA 1996 were treated as withdrawn and, alternatively, the tribunal said they would fail on the evidence or be struck out. No monetary remedy was awarded because the substantive claims were dismissed or withdrawn.