Maya Forstater wins six-figure damages award

Doyle Clayton client, Maya Forstater, has won substantial damages in her case against her former employer, CGD Europe.

The case, which has been running since 2019, attracted worldwide attention when the Employment Appeal Tribunal ruled in 2021 that her gender critical beliefs are protected under the Equality Act 2010.

Having won her appeal, Ms Forstater’s case returned to the Employment Tribunal in 2022, which found that she had been unlawfully discriminated against and victimised by her employer as a consequence of her beliefs.

The remedy hearing to determine the damages she was due was heard in March 2023, with the Employment Tribunal awarding her £106,000.

A comment from Doyle Clayton

Peter Daly, a partner at Doyle Clayton, commented,

“This award underlines the substantial financial cost that will be paid by employers who discriminate against people with gender critical beliefs. Time and again, attempts are made by those employers to justify unlawful actions on the basis of a vague pursuit of some greater moral purpose. Regardless of whether or not employers genuinely believe that can justify unlawful conduct, it cannot. Unlawful conduct will be recognised as such by the courts and tribunals, and treated accordingly. 

“It is of particular importance to note (at paragraph 27) that aggravated damages were awarded to Ms Forstater because of the press releases and other public commentary issued by the Respondents during the course of the litigation. The Tribunal made particular criticism of the Respondents’ attempts to associate her falsely with “bigotry”, and the Respondents’ misrepresentation of Ms Forstater’s Employment Appeal Tribunal judgment.

“That judgment has been the subject of misrepresentation by campaigners who have sought to downplay the significance of Maya’s successes in litigation. This award in damages highlights the risk in failing to understand that gender critical women are protected from discrimination, and demonstrates that the costs of that discrimination are real, significant, and enforceable against those who discriminate.” 

Ms Forstater was represented by Peter Daly, instructing Ben Cooper KC and Anya Palmer.

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