Panel awards Allison Bailey payout in row over trans rights but rejects her claim against Stonewall
A barrister who tweeted criticism of the LGBTQ+ charity Stonewall’s position on trans rights was unlawfully discriminated against and victimised as a result of her views, an employment tribunal has found.
Allison Bailey, a founder of the gender-critical group LGB Alliance, sued Garden Court Chambers (GCC) and Stonewall, claiming that the latter had instructed or induced discrimination by her chambers.
A judge-led panel agreed with Bailey that she was subjected to direct discrimination by GCC on the basis of her gender-critical views, previously found to be a protected philosophical belief under the Equality Act in the Maya Forstater case.
The panel, led by the employment judge Sarah Goodman, said GCC was wrong to publish a statement saying Bailey was being investigated in relation to her tweets after complaints, including from Stonewall, that they were transphobic, and to subsequently conclude that two of the tweets were likely to have breached a barrister’s core duties. However, it rejected her claim against Stonewall.
GCC, which was a member of the charity’s diversity champions scheme, argued that Bailey’s tweets went beyond expression of her gender-critical views and into abuse.
But the panel, in its judgment handed down on Thursday, said: “We concluded that her beliefs, not just about gender self-identity but about the pernicious effect of Stonewall’s campaign promoting...
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