Laid-Off Eversheds Associate Wins Reverse Bias Judgment
A laid-off Eversheds associate who says he should have been rated higher than a colleague on maternity leave has won a bias judgment against the British law firm.
An Employment Tribunal awarded 123,300 pounds to former associate John de Belin, according to stories in the London Daily Mail and the Law Society Gazette. The amount translates to more than $177,000.
When Eversheds had to choose between two associates for a layoff in the firm’s property division in Leeds, it based its decision on a point system that rated such things as financial performance, discipline history and absence records, the Daily Mail says.
Because the female associate was on maternity leave, the firm awarded her top points in an automatic calculation of her ability to swiftly secure ‘lock-up’ payments from clients. De Belin lost out by a half point, and he blames his 2009 firing on a fear the firm would be sued if it fired the woman.
The law firm is appealing.
Prior coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Firm Hit Over Partner’s Hiring Question: How Can We Identify New Mom’s Commitment?”
