The Reverend Canon J C Pemberton v The Right Reverend Richard Inwood, Former Acting Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Judge | Judge Eady |
| Neutral Citation | UKEAT/0072/16/BA |
| Court | Employment Appeal Tribunal |
| Subject Matter | Harassment,Sex Discrimination,Sexual Orientation Discrimination/Transexualism,Sex Discrimination - Marital status,Not landmark |
| Date | 07 December 2016 |
| Published date | 21 December 2017 |
Copyright 2016
Appeal No. UKEAT/0072/16/BA
EMPLOYMENT APPEAL TRIBUNAL
FLEETBANK HOUSE, 2-6 SALISBURY SQUARE, LONDON EC4Y 8AE
At the Tribunal
On 8 & 9 September 2016
Judgment handed down on 7 December 2016
Before
HER HONOUR JUDGE EADY QC
(SITTING ALONE)
THE REVEREND CANON J C PEMBERTON APPELLANT
THE RIGHT REVEREND RICHARD INWOOD, FORMER
ACTING BISHOP OF SOUTHWELL AND NOTTINGHAM RESPONDENT
Transcript of Proceedings
JUDGMENT
APPEAL & CROSS-APPEAL
UKEAT/0072/16/BA
APPEARANCES
For the Appellant MR SEAN JONES
(One of Her Majesty’s Counsel)
and
MR JUSTIN GAU
(of Counsel)
and
MS HELEN TROTTER
(of Counsel)
Instructed by:
Messrs Thomson Snell & Passmore Solicitors
Corinthian House
Galleon Boulevard
Crossways Business Park
Dartford
Kent
DA2 6QE
For the Respondent MR THOMAS LINDEN
(One of Her Majesty’s Counsel)
and
MR MATTHEW SHERIDAN
(of Counsel)
Instructed by:
Messrs Herbert Smith Freehills LLP
Exchange House
Primrose Street
London
EC2A 2EG
UKEAT/0072/16/BA
SUMMARY
SEX DISCRIMINATION - Marital status
SEXUAL ORIENTATION DISCRIMINATION
HARASSMENT
Discrimination - marital status - sexual orientation
Qualifications bodies - relevant qualification - sections 53 and 54 Equality Act 2010
Exceptions from liability - religious requirements relating to marriage - schedule 9
paragraph 2 Equality Act 2010
Harassment - section 26 Equality Act 2010
The Claimant is a Church of England Priest who married his long-term partner. This was a
marriage between two persons of the same sex, made permissible by virtue of the Marriage
(Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, the enactment of which the Church of England had opposed.
As a result of this marriage, the Respondent revoked the Claimant’s Permission to Officiate
(“PTO”) and refused to grant him an Extra Parochial Ministry Licence (“EPML”), which he
needed to be able to take up a post as Chaplain in an NHS Trust. The Claimant brought ET
proceedings, complaining of unlawful direct discrimination because of sexual orientation and/or
marital status and of unlawful harassment related to sexual orientation, his claims being brought
under section 53 Equality Act 2010 (“EqA”) which applies to qualifications bodies, as defined
by section 54(2) EqA. The Respondent denied he was a qualifications body but, in the
alternative, contended that any relevant qualifications (defined by section 54(3)) were for the
purposes of employment for the purposes of an organised religion, falling within the exemption
allowed by schedule 9 paragraph 2 of the EqA and he had applied the requirement that the
Claimant not be in a same sex marriage because that was incompatible with the doctrine of the
Church of England in relation to marriage (“the compliance principle”). The claim of
harassment was further denied on its facts.
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