French v Barclays Bank plc
Encyclopedia
French v Barclays Bank plc [1998] EWCA Civ 1092 is a UK labour law case concerning the contract of employment. It held that changing a staff manual can breach the term of mutual trust and confidence
that is implied into every individual contract of employment, and a unilateral change to a workplace practice can breach that contract.
to Essex
. He needed to sell his family home in Radley
and buy another in Billericay
. The staff manual at Barclays Bank plc said he would get a discretionary interest free bridging loan to let him complete the purchase of a new house before selling the old one. But, sadly, the housing market collapsed. By October 1989 the valuers said the Radley house was worth £150,000, when he had been trying to sell it for £195,000. The bank changed its policy and withdrew the loan. Mr French argued that withdrawal of the loan was a breach of contract. Lord Lester QC represented Mr French.
.
Walker LJ and Hobhouse LJ agreed.
Mutual trust and confidence
Mutual trust and confidence is a phrase used in English law, particularly with reference to contracts in UK labour law, to refer to the obligations owed in an employment relationship between the employer and the worker....
that is implied into every individual contract of employment, and a unilateral change to a workplace practice can breach that contract.
Facts
Mr French was meant to relocate from OxfordshireOxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
to Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. He needed to sell his family home in Radley
Radley
Radley is a village and civil parish about northwest of the centre of Abingdon, Oxfordshire. The parish includes the hamlet of Lower Radley on the River Thames. It was part of Berkshire until the 1974 boundary changes transferred it to Oxfordshire....
and buy another in Billericay
Billericay
Billericay is a town and civil parish in the Basildon borough of Essex, England. It lies within the London Basin, has a population of 40,000, and constitutes a commuter town east of central London. The town has three secondary schools and a variety of open spaces...
. The staff manual at Barclays Bank plc said he would get a discretionary interest free bridging loan to let him complete the purchase of a new house before selling the old one. But, sadly, the housing market collapsed. By October 1989 the valuers said the Radley house was worth £150,000, when he had been trying to sell it for £195,000. The bank changed its policy and withdrew the loan. Mr French argued that withdrawal of the loan was a breach of contract. Lord Lester QC represented Mr French.
Judgment
Waller LJ held that the loan scheme was non-contractual and discretionary. Nevertheless the withdrawal of the scheme was likely to destroy trust and confidence. Accordingly unilaterally changing the workplace practice was a breach of the implied term of mutual trust and confidenceMutual trust and confidence
Mutual trust and confidence is a phrase used in English law, particularly with reference to contracts in UK labour law, to refer to the obligations owed in an employment relationship between the employer and the worker....
.
Walker LJ and Hobhouse LJ agreed.
See also
- UK labour law
- Employment contract in English lawEmployment contract in English lawAn employment contract in English law is a specific kind of contract whereby one person performs work under the direction of another. The two main features of a contract is that work is exchanged for a wage, and that one party stands in a relationship of relative dependence, or inequality of...
- Autoclenz Ltd v BelcherAutoclenz Ltd v BelcherAutoclenz Ltd v Belcher [2011] is a significant UK labour law case decided by the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom, concerning the scope of statutory protection of rights for working individuals...
[2011] UKSC 41