Mrs Melanie Tether > Chambers of Oliver Segal KC > London, England > Barrister Profile
Old Square Chambers Offices
Old Square Chambers
10-11 BEDFORD ROW
LONDON
WC1R 4BU
England
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Mrs Melanie Tether
Work Department
Education; employment; EU and competition.
Position
All aspects of employment law, both individual and collective. Melanie is a tenacious advocate and is known for her ability to master challenging briefs. She is regularly instructed in heavyweight equal pay and discrimination claims and has appeared in a number of landmark cases, including several references to the Court of Justice of the European Union. She is a leading expert on the Transfer of Undertaking Regulations. Melanie has appeared in many reported cases. Recent examples include: Mustafa v Trek Highways Ltd [2016] IRLR 326; Griffiths v. Secretary of State for Work and Pensions [2014] EqLR 545; Earle v Equality and Human Rights Commission [2014] IRLR 845; Kelly v The Hesley Group Ltd [2013] IRLR 514 EAT and British Airways plc v Mak and others [2011] ICR 735 CA.
Career
Called to the Bar 1995. Previously a partner in Norton Rose.
Memberships
ELA, ELBA, former Chair and current Vice President of ILS.
Lawyer Rankings
Regional Bar > Western Circuit > Employment
(Leading Juniors)Ranked: Tier 2London Bar > Employment
(Leading Juniors)Ranked: Tier 1Melanie Tether – Old Square Chambers ‘Melanie is silk quality in the guise of a junior.’
A ‘strong set for employment work with high profile counsel‘, Old Square Chambers‘ members routinely handle significant employment cases, including appearing in the Court of Appeal. In a prominent case highlight, Michael Ford KC successfully represented UNISON as intervenor in the Supreme Court in Harpur Trust v Brazel, a high-profile case concerning if part-year workers (in this context, a term-time only music teacher at a school) accrue their holiday entitlement pro rata throughout the year, or during the parts of the year the employee is working. In a separate matter, Ben Cooper KC is acting for ASDA in ongoing, large-scale litigation concerning multiple equal pay claims. At the junior end of chambers, whistleblowing and equal pay claims have been prominent in Melanie Tether‘s recent workload, and Robert Moretto successfully acted for the Department of Work and Pensions in Mackereth v DWP, a belief discrimination claim brought by a Christian doctor who refused to address transgender patients by their preferred pronouns. In March 2023, the senior end of the team was bolstered by the elevation of Eleena Misra KC and Nadia Motraghi KC to silk. Sarah Keogh is now a full-time Employment Judge.