Clyde & Co and Mo Sethi KC represented Standard Chartered Bank on landmark DIFC Court victory
Clyde & Co and Mo Sethi KC represented Standard Chartered Bank in the first-ever discrimination and victimisation case to be decided under the current employment legislation in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Court.
The claimant, a British national of Asian origin, was employed as the bank’s head of compliance for Global Islamic Banking, based in Dubai, until his employment was terminated by reason of redundancy. His claims for whistleblowing detriment and dismissal were struck out at a preliminary hearing. At trial, he claimed to be the victim of a long-term racist conspiracy involving many senior managers of the global bank in a large number of jurisdictions. He sought the maximum compensatory award for numerous acts of discrimination under Article 59 and victimisation under Article 60 of DIFC Employment Law No 2 of 2019. He claimed an uplift in damages of three times pursuant to Article 40(2) DIFC Law of Damages and Remedies No 7 of 2005. He also claimed that the Bank should be fined for breaching its statutory duty to provide and maintain a workplace free of discrimination and victimisation and without risks to health and safety under Article 43(2) DIFC Employment Law.
Following a multi-week trial in the new DIFC Courts, chief justice Wayne Martin has handed down judgment in Mahmood v Standard Chartered Bank DIFC (CFI 044/2021) dismissing each and every allegation made by the claimant in a comprehensive 188-page judgment. In doing so, for the first time, the DIFC Court has clarified many important aspects of DIFC law and provided welcome guidance on the practice and procedure of bringing and conducting such complex and high-value discrimination and victimisation claims. The judgment will be of interest to all dispute resolution and employment law practitioners in the DIFC, ADGM and other Middle East offshore jurisdictions.
Ben Brown and David True of our MEA Employment team instructed Mohinderpal Sethi K.C. to appear for the defendant. Our team was instructed by Yasser Shabbir of Standard Chartered Bank.
