Mr C Lander v Incodia International Limited — 2020

On 13 July 2020 at East London Hearing Centre, Employment Judge Elgot considered the claimant's application to add three senior employees of Incodia International Limited as additional individual respondents. The judge refused the application. The judgment records that Mr Huckle was the Executive Chairman and a statutory director, Mr Lock was a statutory director and chief executive officer, and Mr Smith was Services Director.

The tribunal noted that the respondent accepted it was vicariously liable for any acts of discrimination, harassment and victimisation carried out by those employees in the course of their employment, and that it did not rely on the section 109(4) Equality Act 2010 defence. It also noted that the respondent had indemnity insurance, that there was no pleaded claim that any of the three had instructed, caused, induced, aided or helped discrimination within sections 111 to 112 of the Equality Act 2010, and that the claimant would still have a comprehensive remedy against the respondent if liability were established.

Applying the factors in Selkent Bus Co Limited v Moore and considering the balance of hardship and injustice, the judge held that it was not necessary in the interests of justice to add the three individuals. The judgment records that the claimant would face little prejudice from refusal because the three employees would remain key witnesses and could be cross-examined, while joinder would expose them to individual prejudice, increase cost and lengthen the hearing. The judge declined to make specific findings on time limits for claims against the proposed individual respondents, saying those issues would be determined at the substantive hearing in June 2021.