Mr H Butala v DB Group Services (UK) Limited (sued as “Deutsche Bank”) — 2021

Mr H Butala brought the sixth of his claims against DB Group Services UK Limited, presented on 19 November 2020 as a breach of contract claim. The tribunal identified a preliminary jurisdictional issue: whether the claim had already been compromised by a binding COT3 settlement agreed on 7 September 2020.

The tribunal rejected the claimant's submission that his stock option issues were outside the COT3. It found that discussions about the stock options and their assignment on 3 or 4 September 2020 had preceded the settlement, and that clause 3 of the COT3, read as a whole, showed that all aspects of his prior entitlements were intended to be settled. The tribunal therefore concluded that the claimant's stock entitlement was encapsulated within the COT3 and that the claim had been settled, even if payment had not been made as expected.

The tribunal also noted that the claimant referred to differing October 2020 payslips and the absence of an updated P45, but said those matters were not within its jurisdiction. To the extent the claimant was alleging that the COT3 had not been properly paid, the tribunal said that would be a separate damages claim in the civil courts. On that basis, it held that it did not have jurisdiction to consider the claim and dismissed it.