Contract law

Contracts — the key developments

• Depending on the facts, it is possible for a redundancy policy contained in an intranet folder to be part of an individual’s contract of employment (case 1).

• When considering whether a worker is an employee, a tribunal can only find a contract clause to be a sham if there is evidence that both parties intended the contract to paint a false picture as to their respective obligations (cases 2 and 5).

• Where an employee agrees, albeit under protest, to work under varied contract terms, a subsequent refusal to observe those terms may amount to misconduct justifying dismissal (case 3).

• A worker who appears to be working on secondment for another organisation may on the facts have ceased to be an employee of her/his original employer (case 4).

• Where there is no express right to impose garden leave on an employee, it may be implied, depending first on whether the employee has an implied right to work and second, whether despite that, the employer has the right to impose leave in the circumstances (case 6).