UK-based firm Osborne Clarke has been embroiled in a discrimination case brought by an Indian law student for its refusal to accept his trainee application.
The firm dismissed the student’s training contract application in 2007 on the grounds that he was a non-EEA (European Economic Area) resident and needed a work permit.
A ruling issued in March by the UK Employment Appeal Tribunal found that the firm “could not justify their policy of not accepting applications for training contracts from non-EEA nationals”. A spokesman from Osborne Clarke said the firm was disappointed with the tribunal’s ruling of indirect discrimination.
The firm is now believed to be undertaking measures to comply with the ruling. “We have already re-assessed our position on this issue to ensure that our policy complies with the original tribunal’s ruling,” the spokesman said.