Ms B McInerney v Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust — 2018

This judgment concerns remedy for a victimisation claim that had already succeeded at the liability stage. The tribunal awarded compensation for injury to feelings and aggravated damages arising from the respondent's failure to appoint the claimant to the Forensic Gender Clinic role. It held that Dr Hankin had played a decisive role in preventing the appointment and described her actions in that context as high-handed, malicious and insulting. The tribunal placed the injury to feelings award in the middle Vento band and awarded £20,000, with aggravated damages of £10,000.

The tribunal accepted that the claimant would probably have been appointed to the Forensic Gender Clinic role, would likely have started on 1 March 2020, would have worked two sessions or one day per month for ten months each year, and would likely have continued in that role until age 67 rather than 75. On that basis it awarded past and future loss for that role, with interest on the past loss and a discount for accelerated receipt on future loss.

The tribunal rejected the claims for loss of medico-legal fees and for loss of First-tier Mental Health Tribunal fees. It found that the claimant had not proved, on the balance of probabilities, that those alleged losses were caused by the victimisation. The tribunal repeatedly noted the absence of independent medical evidence diagnosing and prognosing the claimant's alleged mental health condition, the lack of corroborative evidence of reputational damage or social anxiety, and the limited evidence of mitigation. It therefore made no award under those heads.