The claimant was employed by the defendant as a customer advisor and resigned in 2015 following various occurrences. On 4 December 2014, the claimant lodged a Tribunal Claim with the Employment Tribunal for a range of grievances with the defendant, including suffering from work-related stress due to their working environment. A settlement was reached on 26 February 2015 between the parties. The claimant subsequently lodged a civil claim for work-related stress and harassment against the defendant, and the defendant applied to strike out these proceedings as an abuse of the court’s process. The claim is the latest in a series of similar applications in which claimants have brought civil claims after reaching an agreement in the Tribunal.

Master Dagnall rejected the argument that the personal injury proceedings were an abuse of process since the settlement itself did not prevent the claimant from bringing such proceedings. The Master also held that the defendant’s signing of the agreement meant that they were prevented by estoppel from making such an application against the claimant’s action.