Ex-Church of Scotland Minister Wins Unfair Dismissal Claim

A former minister with the Church of Scotland has won the right to claim compensation for alleged sex discrimination in a landmark ruling from the House of Lords.

|TOP|Helen Percy claimed she was forced out of her job following accusations that she had an affair with a married church elder.

The ruling by the Law Lords in London which gives Percy the right to take the Kirk to a tribunal comes against the widespread expectation of a ruling in favour of the Church of Scotland, which claimed its treatment of Percy, in holding a spiritual post, lay outside the jurisdiction of civil law.

The landmark victory follows a protracted battle following claims by the 39-year-old that the Kirk did not take similar action against male ministers also accused of extra-marital affairs.

The Law Lords’ decision overturns a ruling by an employment tribunal which said it had no jurisdiction to hear her case because her employment was essentially spiritual and not covered by civil law.

It also overrides the findings of an appeal tribunal and the Court of Session in Edinburgh which also upheld the exclusive jurisdiction of the Church of Scotland over its own affairs and said that Ms. Percy was not an employee.

|AD|Ms. Percy took the case to the House of Lords to obtain a ruling that her agreement to work with the church as a minister was the same as a contract of employment, with Kirk lawyers arguing that under the 1921 Scotland Act, the Kirk’s power to decide all matters of doctrine, worship, government and discipline came from Christ alone.

Four out of the five ruling Law Lords found in favour of Ms. Percy, agreeing that a sex discrimination claim should not be regarded as a spiritual matter.

The Church of Scotland reacted to the surprise victory saying that the “judgement did not deal with the facts of Ms. Percy’s claim”.

A Kirk spokesman said: "It is about jurisdiction - that is whether Ms Percy is entitled to have her case heard within the civil courts as opposed to solely within the courts of the church.

"Based on a legal interpretation of Ms Percy's particular contract, the House of Lords has ruled that Ms Percy's sex discrimination claim can be tested in a civil court.

"This judgement would not apply to other categories of ministers of religion.

"Because Ms Percy's case has been referred back to the employment tribunal, it would be inappropriate for us to make any further comment at this time."