Employment Briefing - August 2011

Supreme Court rules on legal representation at disciplinary hearings

The Supreme Court has heard the appeal in R (on the application of G) v Governors of X School [2011] UKSC 30 brought by a School against a decision by the High Court (upheld by the Court of Appeal) that G, a teacher accused of inappropriate sexual misconduct with a pupil, should be entitled to legal representation at his disciplinary hearing.

The Supreme Court has controversially held that Article 6 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) (the right to a fair and public hearing) was not, on the facts, engaged in relation to the disciplinary proceedings within the School. The Supreme Court accepted that the civil right at issue was G's right to practise as a teacher and work with children. This right would be determined by the Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) which would make the decision of whether to place him on the barred list. G had argued that the outcome of internal