Protection from Harassment Act 1997
- Protection from Harassment Act 1997
The Protection from Harassment Act 1997 is a piece of United Kingdom law, which among other things creates a legal right against stalkers, and consistent bullying in the workplace.
The Act defines harassment in section 1(1) as a "course of conduct" amounting to harassment and provides by section 7(3) that a course of conduct must involve conduct on at least two occasions. If these requirements are satisfied, the claimant may pursue a civil remedy for damages for anxiety: section 3(2). The requirement of a course of conduct shows that Parliament was conscious that it might not be in the public interest to allow the law to be set in motion for one boorish incident.
Under this act the definition of harassment is behavior which causes alarm or distress. The Act provides for a jail sentence of up to six months or a fine. There are also a variety of civil remedies that can be used including awarding of damages, and restraining orders backed by the power of arrest.
Employers have vicarious liability for harassment by their employees under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997, (see Majrowski Case link below). For employees this may provide an easier route to compensation than claims based on discrimination legislation or personal injury claims for stress at work, as the elements of harassment are likely to be easier to prove, the statutory defence is not available to the employer, and it may be easier to establish a claim for compensation. Also as the claim can be made in the County Court costs are recoverable and legal aid is available.
In Scotland the Act works slightly differently:
* A jail term of up to five years in very serious cases can be imposed.
* Civil remedies include damages, interdict and non-harassment orders backed by powers of arrest.
ee also
*Harassment (UK)
*UK employment discrimination law
External links
* [http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts1997/97040--a.htm Protection From Harassment Act 1997 (full text)]
* [http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200506/ldjudgmt/jd060712/majro-1.htm#1 Majrowski v Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Trust]
* [http://www.bailii.org/cgi-bin/markup.cgi?doc=/ew/cases/EWHC/QB/2006/1898.html&query=Green+Deutsche+Bank&method=all Green v DB Group Services (UK) Ltd. (2006) EWHC 1898 (QB) (01 August 2006)]
* [http://www.nfh.org.uk/resources/Articles/harassment/index.php Neighbours From Hell in Britain: Harassment from your Neighbour]
* [http://www.legalferret.net Weaver v. NATHFE - Race Discrimination Case]
Wikimedia Foundation.
2010.
Look at other dictionaries:
Harassment (UK) — Harassment in the United Kingdom is a topic which in the past couple of decades has been taken increasingly seriously and has been the subject of a number of pieces of major legislation. This article is intended to outline the procedure behind… … Wikipedia
Harassment — refers to a wide spectrum of offensive behaviour. The term commonly refers to behaviour intended to disturb or upset, and, when the term is used in a legal sense, it refers to behaviours which are found threatening or disturbing. Sexual… … Wikipedia
harassment — index aggravation (annoyance), infliction, nuisance, oppression Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 … Law dictionary
Act Against Bullying — Act Against Bullying, also known as AAB, is a national charity in the United Kingdom founded in 2003 by Louise Burfitt Dons The purpose of the charity is to help children who are bullied at school by providing them with confidential advice and to … Wikipedia
List of Statutory Instruments of the United Kingdom, 1997 — This is a complete list of all 1840 Statutory Instruments published in the United Kingdom in the year 1997. NOTOC 1 100* Education (Recognised Bodies) Order 1997 S.I. 1997/1 * Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Ambulance and Paramedic Service… … Wikipedia
Crime and Disorder Act 1998 — Parliament of the United Kingdom Long title An Act to make provision for preventing crime and disorder; to create certain racially aggravated offences; to abolish the rebuttable presumption that a child is doli incapax and … Wikipedia
Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005 — The Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005[1] Parliament of the United Kingdom Long title … Wikipedia
List of Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland, 1997 — This is an incomplete list of Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland in 1997.1 100* Buses (Section 10B Permits) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997 S.R. 1997 No. 1 * Temporary Speed Limit (Upper Ballinderry, Lisburn) Order (Northern… … Wikipedia
Stalking — For the stalking of deer, see deer stalking. For visiting near Chernobyl, see Chernobyl stalking. Stalking is a term commonly used to refer to unwanted and obsessive attention by an individual or group to another person. Stalking behaviors are… … Wikipedia
Sexual harassment — is unwelcome attention of a sexual nature and is a form of legal and social harassment. It includes a range of behavior from seemingly mild transgressions and annoyances to actual sexual abuse or sexual assault. (Dziech et al 1990, Boland 2002)… … Wikipedia
