The Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia (Cultural Bureau) v Abir Alhayali
The Employment Tribunal did not err in law in finding that Ms Alhayali’s functions were not sufficiently close to the exercise of sovereign authority to attract state immunity under section 4 of the State Immunity Act 1978. The Embassy is not immune from her EU law-derived employment claims. The question of waiver is academic given this finding. The claim for psychiatric injury falls within the personal injury exception in section 5, but the interaction with sections 4 and 16 means that only claims not excluded by those sections are permitted. The appeal is allowed and the ET’s order restored.
Source excerpt
- State immunity act 1978
- Employment rights of embassy staff
- Waiver of immunity
- Personal injury (psychiatric)
- Jurisdiction of employment tribunal