Is The Work Christmas Party Worth The Risk?

Detractors will say the office Christmas party has lost its fizz. No more the frisson of excitement about a Big Night Out with lashings of booze and lots of funny stories of quasi-inappropriate behaviour over the watercooler in the morning. Some might say more's the pity. Don't we all deserve to let our proverbial hair down once a year and really show our colleagues who we are, warts and all? A recent Times article took a wry look at when Christmas parties were actually fun. At last, an opportunity to flirt with the accountant you've had a soft spot for, for a while!

We've all heard about instances where things took a rather darker turn. Sexual assaults. We've seen this in our practice at didlaw. On one occasion, we acted for a young (straight) man who was date raped by his male boss, who had slipped Rohypnol in his drink. It's no laughing matter when it gets that bad. We've acted for a woman who was sexually assaulted in full view of her work colleagues. It's