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Ireland
Una Ruffley v The Board of Management of St. Anne’s School
Decision Number:
Published on: 11/12/2015
Issues Covered:
Discipline Health and Safety
Article Authors The main content of this article was provided by the following authors.
Liam Riordan
Liam Riordan
Liam riordan
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Edel Kennedy Associate
Edel Kennedy Associate
Edel kennedy

Edel is an Associate in the Employment Law and Benefits Team at Mason Hayes & Curran. Edel offers an experienced, solution-focused approach to clients from a wide range of sectors including retail, educational sector, public sector, manufacturing, and information technology.

Edel is regularly involved in representing clients in actions for breach of contract, employer liability claims and personal injury cases for bullying. Edel also advises clients on all employment issues including grievances, trade disputes, disciplinary investigations and proceedings, the termination of employment, and complaints of bullying or harassment.

For the last three years, Edel has delivered workshops on the Law Society’s Diploma course and solicitor training course. Edel has also featured on RTE Radio 1, the Irish Times and the Law Society Gazette on legal matters.

Background

This is an important case for schools which were concerned by the original High Court decision for two reasons; 

1. It appeared to represent an extension of the conventional definition of bullying by virtue of the High Court’s finding that this employer’s disciplinary process could be described as bullying and; 

2. The significant monetary award to the SNA. 

B. The High Court Decision of 2014 

The High Court made the award in 2014 based on what Mr Justice O’Neill then described as “severe” and “unmerited” treatment in what, he found, to be persistent inappropriate behaviour towards the special needs assistant by school management. MHC advised the Board of Management to appeal the decision, which they duly did. 

The Court

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Disclaimer The information in this article is provided as part of Legal Island's Employment Law Hub. We regret we are not able to respond to requests for specific legal or HR queries and recommend that professional advice is obtained before relying on information supplied anywhere within this article. This article is correct at 11/12/2015
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