In person For the v Mr B Brooks – Advisor — 2023

This was a preliminary hearing on whether the claimant met the Equality Act 2010 definition of disability. The tribunal had limited medical records, but it considered the claimant's impact statement, oral evidence, a GP letter dated 16 January 2023, and medication spreadsheets. The respondent disputed that Crohn's disease amounted to a disability, while anxiety and depression were accepted as a disability by the end of the hearing.

The tribunal found that the claimant had suffered from Crohn's disease since 2015 and that it had a substantial and long-term adverse effect on normal day-to-day activities. It accepted evidence of severe flare-ups, ongoing urgent and frequent bowel movements, pain, fatigue, and the need to plan daily activities around toilet access and other avoidance strategies. It held that medication did not remove the substantial adverse effect.

The tribunal also found that the claimant had anxiety and depression and that, at the time of the acts complained of in the claim, 13 September 2021 to 8 December 2021, he was disabled by those conditions. It noted that the claimant had been receiving medication for that condition since 2015, despite gaps in the records. The judgment did not determine the substantive discrimination, breach of contract, or working time claims, and no remedy was awarded.