*Attrill & others v Dresdner Kleinwort Ltd and another company

Contract Variation. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, upheld a decision that the claimants, who were employees of the first defendant bank, had been entitled to enforce a promise made by the bank that they would receive a retention bonus for the year 2008. The promise had amounted to a legal enforceable obligation on the bank to pay the bonus.

Walsh v Shanahan and others

Agent Fiduciary duty. The claimant had pulled out of the purchase of a property. He had been represented in the transaction by a company and its defendant directors. Subsequently, the defendants purchased the property themselves, making use of the legal advice and valuation report that had been prepared for the claimant, and made a substantial profit. The claimant sought an account of profits for breach of fiduciary duty arising from misuse of his confidential information. The High Court rejected that claim, but awarded him nominal damages for the defendants use of the information. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, dismissed the claimant's appeal, finding that, in the circumstances, the judge had been correct not to order an account of profits.

Koenig v Mind Gym Ltd

Employment Termination of employment. The employee was dismissed from her employment one day short of a year's continuous service. The issue was whether her attendance at a meeting with the employer and a client, at the employer's request amounted to 'work' for the purpose of calculating continuous employment. The Employment Appeal Tribunal, in dismissing the employee's appeal, held that, on the facts, the employment tribunal had been entitled to conclude that it did not.

Chambers v Somerset County Council

Unlawful deduction from wages Jurisdiction. The employer's claim for unauthorised deduction from wages was upheld by the employment tribunal. The employer appealed on the ground that the tribunal had had no jurisdiction to make the orders it had made. In allowing the appeal, the Employment Appeal Tribunal held that the employment judge had had no jurisdiction to make the declarations which he had. In those circumstances, the judge's orders were set aside.

Thomson v Barnet Primary Care Trust

Employment Unfair dismissal. The Employment Appeal Tribunal held that a nurse who had been dismissed by her employer, but following an internal appeal had been reinstated with certain conditions imposed on her employment had been constructively dismissed. The matter would be remitted to the employment tribunal for reconsideration.

*Johnson v Revenue and Customs Commissioners

Income tax Option. The First-tier Tribunal (Tax Chamber) allowed the appeal of a taxpayer who had claimed that 30,000 of a 75,700 payment he had received from his former employer had been the return of the sum paid by him to purchase an option under an enterprise management incentive scheme and should therefore not be taxable.

George v Ministry of Justice

Employment Contract of service. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, upheld a finding that the terms of a collective agreement regarding when the defendant employer should allow prison officers to take time off in lieu of additional hours worked had not been incorporated into the claimant employee's contract of employment. There had simply been no evidence to support the claimant's submissions that those terms had been incorporated.

*Anderson and others v London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority

Employment Remuneration. In 2007, the employer and two unions reached a three year agreement regarding pay for the employees. That agreement provided two alternatives for pay in 2009. In 2009, the employer elected to increase the employees' pay by the lower of the two alternatives. The employees brought a claim for unlawful deduction from wages. The employment tribunal and the Employment Appeal Tribunal dismissed the claim and the employees appealed. The Court of Appeal, Civil Division, allowed the employees' appeal on the basis that properly construed, the wording in respect of 2009 entitled the employees to a 2.5% increase in 2009.

Rocca v Poste Italiane SpA

European Union Employment. The Court of Justice of the European Union made a preliminary ruling concerning the interpretation of cll 2 and 5 of the Framework Agreement of fixed-term work, concluded on 18 March 1999 (the Framework Agreement) set out in the Annex to Council Directive (EC) 1999-70 of 28 June 1999 (concerning the framework agreement on fixed-term work concluded by ETUC, UNICE and CEEP). The request had been made in proceedings between Mr Della Rocca and Poste Italiane SpA (Poste Italiane) concerning the employment relationship established with the latter.

Vaughan v Lewisham Borough Council and others

Libel and slander Injunction. The claimant applied for an interim injunction in libel and harassment against the defendants, who had been involved in managing the claimant or otherwise involved in her dismissal. The defendants sought a stay of the libel action pending resolution of employment tribunal proceedings. The Queen's Bench Division, refused the injunction and stayed the proceedings.