Breach of confidentiality

[Mordla]

Hi

I'm new to the forums and not sure if my issue is personal or civil or employment. So apologies if this is in the wrong area.

I left my previous employer in February 2015. It was not an amicable departure and for the past 16 months I have had a legal fight with the chairman of my former employer monies owed. That issue was settled in court on the 30th June this year. (The chairman did not get what he wanted)

During that period I had a number of instances of the individual at the heart of the claim trying to cause me some personal difficulties with emails
To my new employer etc. My current employer responded at the time and told them to back off and never contact them again. (This was in Feb 16)

With the Financial claim being settled I thought it was over. last week my partner received a letter from the chairman of my former employer directly (they have never met) advising her to be cautious around me, to not trust me and offering to help her if she has any problems with me in the future. This letter was sent addressed to her at our private residential address.

My partner wrote back and stated she did not welcome the letter and that she had been made to feel vulnerable in her own home and very uncomfortable that they had access to her address when they had no right to contact her at our home. (It's worth adding that we live at a different address since I left this employer)

It has now also emerged that at the same time the chairman of my former employer wrote to my current employer (this despite them demanding they do not). The email was nothing more than a complete character assassination and made claims I had lied, cheated, cost the business £000's and was basically a terrible human being. He also told them that during my period of employment with them I had been to see a psychiatrist and that i was mentally unstable.

My current employer is well aware of my history with my former employer and chairman. (I had taken some counselling in 2014 atbthebheight of my divorce, something I feel no shame or embarrassment about). But the letter to my employer was designed to do exactly that.

I'm fortunate that my current employer is a decent and honourable organisation and they are only too aware of the chairmans reputation.

But I find myself in a position now where I am deeply uncomfortable at their tactics, the contact with my partner, the attempts to embarrass and discredit me with my current employer and given the history I am very concerned it will continue to escalate. I travel abroad frequently for my work and my partner is home alone a lot of the time. I also work in the same industry as my previous employer and we have mutual contacts and customers.

I need to make them stop and held to account for what they are doing and have done. While any damage to my professional reputation at this stage appears to be minimal I am deeply uncomfortable that a personal matter (my counselling) has been bought to the attention of my current employer. While they appear to be entirely fine and supportive of me, it is still something I had no wish for them to know about.

I don't know what my options are but I feel I must now take some action.

Thank you in advance for any help and advice.

Rich

[R0b]

Re: Breach of confidentiality

Hi Rich,

Sounds like you are having a bit of a rough situation with your old employer. On initial view there is a number types of claim you could potentially bring against the chairman. These might include, defamation, harassment, misuse of private information, malicious falsehood, and maybe breach of data protection / breach of confidence.

Have you attempted to write to him, explaining that if he continues then you will take action against him? From the sounds of it there could be an argument to obtain an injunction against him in terms of harassment to your partner and employer.

Although the Police may say to go down the civil route you could also make a formal complaint to the police for harassment on a criminal level. Your partner could also make a complaint too if it continues.

That's just a really high level view of your situation, but you seem to have experience of court proceedings so its whether you decide to go down that route again given what has happened.

[Mordla]

Re: Breach of confidentiality

Thank you.

I have asked him a number of times to leave us alone but he hasn't and the email/letter to my employer was after I asked him to cease.

My chief concern is that he has potentially made me a liability to my new employer, it's a very small industry and I do not believe he will stop at my employer and will now target our mutual partners and customers in an attempt to discrdit me further.

I think an injunction is needed to stop him doing and more damage, but I also feel I need to hold him than count for disclosing my private medical history in what was an obvious vexatious action. There was no other reason for these steps.

Guess I'm going back to court! 😡