British expats win payout in Itay

Italy

Three British lecturers have won a case against an Italian University after the Italian Supreme Court found them to have suffered discrimination.

The three lecturers, David Petrie, Robert Hill and David Newbold have finally won the case against the University of Verona following an arduous 15-year fight. They have each won damages of €6000, along with €5000 to cover their legal costs.

The case was borne out of incident in 1995 when the three scholars each applied for a minor promotion within the University. All three were unsuccessful in their application due to an apparent lack of Italian qualifications, however they argued that it was more due to a blanket of discrimination that covers many British lecturers who work in Italy.

Italy has faced allegations of discrimination before, the European Court of Justice has has found Italy guilty on seven previous occasions.

Mr Petrie said: Delighted as I am with this judgment, as it is always welcome to see a principle established, it nevertheless raises a few questions. How come it takes 15 years to get any compensation? And can the damage be undone?”