Commission statement on Preddy and Hall legal case

11 March 2011

John Wadham, Legal Director at the Commission, said:

“This morning we withdrew our cross appeal in this case. It was filed initially because of an error of judgment on the part of our legal team.

“They submitted the cross appeal in an attempt to clarify the law around how damages are calculated in cases such as this. This resulted in it appearing that Steve Preddy and Martyn Hall were seeking to increase the amount of damages they receive because Mr and Mrs Bull’s Christian beliefs had led them to break the law. This was not our intention and it was certainly not the intention of Steve and Martyn.

“I would like to confirm that public money will not be spent funding a claim for increased damages in this case.”

Steve Preddy and Martyn Hall commented:

“We brought this case to clarify the law, not to make money. We have always believed that the original award was a fair one, and are not seeking any further compensation.”

-Ends-


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Notes to Editors

The Commission is a statutory body established under the Equality Act 2006, which took over the responsibilities of Commission for Racial Equality, Disability Rights Commission and Equal Opportunities Commission. It is the independent advocate for equality and human rights in Britain. It aims to reduce inequality, eliminate discrimination, strengthen good relations between people, and promote and protect human rights. The Commission enforces equality legislation on age, disability, gender, race, religion or belief, sexual orientation or transgender status, and encourages compliance with the Human Rights Act. It also gives advice and guidance to businesses, the voluntary and public sectors, and to individuals.