Firstly, I want to apologise if I've snapped a little lately here at Court Records. It's a great forum, but I've had a hard time lately. I'm creating this thread because I want some advice. There's a chance I may have to go to court over something soon. I was discriminated at work. I'm not going to go into details now, but I may later if people are more open about this. I worked there for just over a month, and my boss found out I was taking legal action and fired me on the spot (or so it seems that's why). I've been in contact with the Citizens Advice Bureau and they've given me the contact details for a lawyer.

If she feels I have enough evidence, then she'll take on the case. (Kind of ironic that I'm posting this here, eh?) The reality is, it worries me. The real courtroom is obviously not like the one we see on our DS screens. If this happens, well, I'd like some advice beforehand. Have any members here been to court before? What's it like? What will happen if she takes on my case but loses? Is what I'm doing really worth it? Well, I guess it is, because I'm doing this so anyone else isn't treated the same way, and because me being fired on the spot may count as unfair dismissal.

Any advice..?

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I think if you lose the worst thing that happens is you have to pay the winner's legal fees.

I'd question your lawyer as to what the risks would be if you did loose and what were the chances. I hope you win though, I hate people who discriminate! Good luck with this!!!

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Regardless of whether you win or lose, there will be legal fees involved, either way, so be prepared for it.


The court system is pretty different in the real world than the PW/GS system, so you can pretty much throw most of your knowledge from that out the window. And even then, it varies from country to country.


Also, don't sign anything without reading it first, or if you don't understand it, consult your attorney.


And finally, do listen to what your attorney says, and don't dismiss anything just because you don't like it. The less time you have to spend in court, the better.

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Thanks for your advice. I'm going to call her today. Apparently, I get thirty minutes of her time for free and if she thinks what I can present is sufficient, she'll take the case on. I think she's a specialist when it comes to issues at work - I'm probably the kind of person she'd often deal with. Heck, I don't know what'll happen. I guess I'll find out later, possibly...

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Discrimination in the workplace, especially by a senior staff member, is a breech of equal opportunities. The fact that you were fired because you are planning to take legal action suggests that the staff know of the severity of the fact and want to save face, courts have a tendency to wind up in the papers and as a result the company could lose face.

The key thing is whether or not you're filing the lawsuit against a particular staff member or the company in general. If it is the latter, then is it a limited or another type of company? Sole Traders and partnerships have something called 'Unlimited Liability' which means that if the company gets into debt, and the possessions of the company itself don't cover it, the owners' personal possessions will be repossessed in order to pay the debts. Also, with these types, you're filing it against the company owner, not the company name.

With limited companies, however, it's different. Limited companies can lose the value of investments, but the personal possessions of the management are safe. However, when you file a lawsuit against a limited company, you're fighting the company itself, which means that the lawsuit is filed against the company name.

Thanks for your post Ryuko, but I don't know if it's happening anymore. Apparently, words alone aren't enough to build a sufficient case. I was told I'd probably have to pay a lot to proceed, and it could take ages, so I don't really see the point. My only motive was the hope that this could stop further discrimination.

It was going to be against the whole company, as the boss and one 'colleague' weren't very nice to me. (It's a very small company. There was only one other person.) Even if this is generally over, there's the issue of him still not sending me my money, and he still hasn't e-mailed me back (I e-mailed him on Friday - one week ago) regarding why I was fired. I'm going to have to write a letter to him about this...

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What you need is a perky prodigy attorney who like still in there teens. *cough cough*

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