Wrongful Termination in UK Law

Leading Cases
  • Gunton v Richmond-upon-Thames London Borough Council
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • 03 Julio 1980

    If the only real redress is damages, how can its measure or scope be affected according to whether the contract is regarded as still subsisting or as at an end? To preserve the bare contractual relationship is an empty formality. The difference is fundamental, for there is no legal substitute for voluntary performance.

    I do not think it follows, however, from the rupture of the status of master and servant, or principal and agent, that the contract of service, or the contract of agency, has been terminated by the wrongful act of the master or the principal, what has been determined is only the status or relationship.

  • Zodiac Maritime Agencies Ltd v Fortescue Metals Group Ltd
    • Queen's Bench Division (Commercial Court)
    • 28 Abril 2010

    By this mechanism subsequent market movements are removed from the equation. It is simply a matter of chance when the vessel completes any spot voyages after the termination date. Indeed they may overrun the emergence of an available market. In short I see no basis for requiring the owner to go back into the term market at the end of every spot voyage or for that matter to disregard short time charters in case the market for longer charters emerges in the meantime.

  • Malik and Mahmud v Bank of Credit and Commerce International SA
    • House of Lords
    • 12 Junio 1997

    O'Laoire v. Jackel International Ltd. (No. 2) [1991] I.C.R. 718, involved a claim by a dismissed employee for loss "due to the manner and nature of his dismissal". It was held that such a claim is excluded by Addis. But that does not affect the present case which is based not on the manner of a wrongful dismissal but on a breach of contract which is separate from and independent of the termination of the contract of employment.

  • Geys v Societe Generale, London Branch
    • Supreme Court
    • 19 Diciembre 2012

    Second, there are those terms which are implied into a class of contractual relationship, such as that between landlord and tenant or between employer and employee, where the parties may have left a good deal unsaid, but the courts have implied the term as a necessary incident of the relationship concerned, unless the parties have expressly excluded it: see Lister v Romford Ice & Cold Storage Co Ltd [1957] AC 555, Liverpool City Council v Irwin [1977] AC 239.

  • Rock Refrigeration Ltd v Jones
    • Court of Appeal (Civil Division)
    • 10 Octubre 1996

    In my judgment negative restraints agreed to apply after the termination of employment should not be equated with the primary obligations that are discharged when a contract of employment is terminated consequent upon repudiation. I think it at least arguable that, having regard to the subsequent development of this area of the law, not every restrictive covenant will be discharged upon a repudiatory termination of the employment.

  • Yam Seng Pte Ltd (a Company Registered in Singapore) v International Trade Corporation Ltd
    • Queen's Bench Division
    • 01 Febrero 2013

    Such "relational" contracts, as they are sometimes called, may require a high degree of communication, cooperation and predictable performance based on mutual trust and confidence and involve expectations of loyalty which are not legislated for in the express terms of the contract but are implicit in the parties' understanding and necessary to give business efficacy to the arrangements.

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Legislation
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Books & Journal Articles
  • The Elective and Automatic Theories of Termination in the Common Law of the Contract of Employment: Conundrum Resolved?
    • No. 76-6, November 2013
    • The Modern Law Review
    If a party to an employment contract commits a repudiatory dismissal or resignation, it has long been unclear whether the other party has the option either to terminate or affirm the contract (the ...
    ... ... By a majority, the Supreme Court held that the elective theory also applies in the context of a wrongful repudiation of the employment contract by express dismissal or resignation. This note examines the significance of Geys in the context of the ... ...
  • Settlement of Labour Disputes under Cameroonian Labour Law
    • No. , August 2018
    • African Journal of International and Comparative Law
    • 407-425
    ... ... defines a contract of an unspecified duration as one whose termination is not fixed in advance and which may be terminated at any time at the ... from a series of causes or factors which may either be lawful or wrongful, 18 having due regard to the particular circumstance of each case. It ... ...
  • ILO Standards and the Nigerian Law of Unfair Dismissal
    • No. , September 2009
    • African Journal of International and Comparative Law
    • 181-212
    ... ... , a clear distinction needs to be drawn between dismissal and termination. Often, dismissal is confused with ‘termination’. The latter simply ... Whatever remedies that are available for wrongful termination is dependent on the contract of employment. The rights ... ...
  • The Embiricos Principle and the Law of Anticipatory Breach
    • No. 47-4, July 1984
    • The Modern Law Review
    ... ... On termination both parties are dis- charged from the obligation to perform ... were perfectly able to perform, since, generally, a wrongful termination gives rise to a claim for damages even if the ... ...
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Law Firm Commentaries
  • Wrongful Termination And Failed Wasted Costs Claim
    • Mondaq UK
  • English Law: When Contractual Limitations on Damages Can Backfire
    • JD Supra United Kingdom
    In AB v. CD [2014] EWCA Civ 229, the Court of Appeal for England and Wales addressed an issue with surprisingly little precedent. It held that a claimant seeking an injunction to prevent an alleged...
    ... ... held that a claimant seeking an injunction to prevent an alleged wrongful termination of a contract was entitled to argue that damages could not be ... ...
  • Exercising the Right to Terminate – Why Your Default Notice Matters
    • JD Supra United Kingdom
    The right to terminate a construction contract for reasons such as poor performance is a crucial contractual right. However, if exercising the right to terminate is not carried out in accordance wi...
    ... ... invalidly terminating the contract, and exposing itself to a wrongful termination action. Recent case law in the UK and Australia serves as a ... ...
  • UK Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill: Highlights
    • JD Supra United Kingdom
    On Wednesday 20 May, the Government published the highly anticipated Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill (the “CIGB”). It legislates for the landmark changes to the UK’s corporate insolvency r...
    ... ... and the temporary suspension of the statutory provisions on wrongful trading announced by the Business Secretary on 28 March 2020 (see ... Prohibition on enforcement of supplier insolvency termination clauses VI. Meetings and filings: the temporary extension of time ... ...
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