EXPERTS are claiming a new tribunal ruling means you can personally sue your boss at work if a request for reasonable adjustments is ignored.
Managers who fail to make reasonable adjustments for disabled workers could face being personally liable following a recent Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) ruling, experts say.
Claire Merriman was tutoring a child with special educational needs when she developed disabilities that affected her ability to continue providing face-to-face sessions, the tribunal records say.
After Merriman’s request for reasonable adjustments was not adequately acted upon, she brought an Equality Act claim against her agency, 1st Staff Limited, as well as four individuals involved in the decision.
The Employment Tribunal initially dismissed the claims against the individuals, finding that a claim for failure to make reasonable adjustments could only be brought against the employer.
However, the Employment Appeal Tribunal overturned that decision, saying that while the duty to make reasonable adjustments rests with the employer, individual employees can be held personally liable for their own actions under sections 109 and 110 of the Equality Act 2010.
The ruling was handed down on 4 August 2026 and published by HM Courts and Tribunals Service on 17 September.
Although the case does not mean the four individuals have been found to have breached the Equality Act, it means the claims against them can now proceed.
Can managers be personally liable for reasonable adjustments?
Kate Underwood, Founder & Chief People Strategist at Southampton-based Kate Underwood HR and Training, said the decision should encourage managers to take reasonable adjustment requests seriously.
She added: “This one should make every manager sit up, not just the business owner. If you’re the person on the ground turning down or fumbling a reasonable adjustment, you can now be named on the claim form yourself.
“That’s not scaremongering, that’s the law as it now stands. The fix isn’t complicated: train your managers properly on what a reasonable adjustment actually is, document every request and every decision, and never let one person wing it based on gut feel. And get occupational health (OH) involved early, every time.
“I bang on about this constantly because it works. A proper OH referral takes the guesswork out of what’s reasonable and gives your manager something solid to act on instead of a personal opinion. Protect your people and you protect yourself.”
Kelly Smallcombe, Fractional Chief People Officer at Meliorem HR Consultancy, said the case should act as a reminder that individual employees can also be held personally liable if they mishandled an adjustment request.
She added: “Most employers forget individuals can be personally liable in these claims, and most employees have no idea they can be named either. This case should change that. If a manager mishandles an adjustment request, it’s not automatically the company’s problem to absorb, it can follow them personally.
“Part of what’s driving this is practical: small employers often go into liquidation after judgment, so claimants are naming individuals to make sure there’s someone left to actually pay out. That should worry managers more than the legal technicality does.
“The real question for employers is training. Does your team know a reasonable adjustment request when it lands on their desk, or are they assuming the business will absorb it if they get it wrong? Equip managers properly now – don’t wait for a tribunal to teach you the gap existed.”
