UK: Court overturns summary judgment in Covid-19 workplace claim

Four workers who had claimed that their employer’s anti-Covid measures were inadequate have succeeded in persuading a judge to overturn an earlier summary judgment against them.

In his decision handed down on 28 May in the King’s Bench Division of the High Court and which will be of particular interest to practitioners engaged in health and safety litigation, employer liability claims and the growing body of case law related to Covid-19, Sir Peter Lane overturned a summary judgment previously granted in favour of 2 Sisters Food Group in a personal injury claim arising from alleged workplace exposure to Covid-19.

The claimants, current and former employees of the food processing company, had claimed that the respondent – formerly the defendant – had failed to implement adequate health and safety measures during the early stages of the pandemic, leading to a serious outbreak at its Anglesey / Ynys Môn premises. Judge Owen had granted summary judgment in favour of the employer in July 2024, dismissing the claims on the grounds that they had no realistic prospect of success. On appeal, however, Sir Peter Lane held that this was a premature disposal of proceedings involving serious factual issues and reversed the earlier decision, allowing the claims to proceed to trial.