discriminatory and racist remarks from a client, what to do?

[gyzmo]

Is he in a business that is regulated or part of some association?

 

Some regulated industries have behavioural traits requirements. If he's part of an association maybe they have the asme thing?

 

Or what about the local chamber of commerce?

[tifo]

i believe they would be libellous and racist as they are directed towards me because of my ethnicity. The same comments would not be relevant to a caucasian.

 

maybe i can report him to companies house? i may give them a call.

[Bookworm]

Or as I said, filter his e-mails to bin. Why keep on reading them? You don't want to do business with him anymore, you don't want to read his insults anymore, so file to bin and forget him!

 

You have no legal recourse that I can see, and he will keep on getting under your skin... IF YOU LET HIM. So don't. Walking away IS the only way to "win" this.

[butty_a]

My head agrees with bookie but I am a vindictive swine so I would let him e-mail you more and more then you might have a case for harrassment. Dont think they are racist as such but derogitory yes, fine line but not crossed with those examples, if you say its been going on for quite some time then it will start to have a racist element so keep the evidence then hand it to the police.

[seftonview]

i believe they would be libellous and racist as they are directed towards me because of my ethnicity. The same comments would not be relevant to a Caucasian.

 

maybe i can report him to companies house? i may give them a call.

 

Defamation

 

They aren't libellous. Firstly because he hasn't circulated them to other people, and secondly, because even if he had, the comments are not sufficient to impune your reputation.

 

Lets look at what you've reported he said:

 

desperado. £xxx in your account. i hope it will solve all your financial problems.

 

He has implied you might have financial problems, but on its own that isn't necessarily libellous. How much was the amount? Suggesting that £500 might solve your financial problems would be clearly tongue-in-cheek. £2,000,000 may not be. Is your reputation specifically dependent upon your liquidity - it's unlikely to be unless you work in finance or a position of trust (such as a judge, member of parliament etc.)

 

even my office cleaner has more decency when asking for payment

 

This doesn't defame you because comparing you to a cleaner doesn't damage your reputation. Conversely though, his office cleaner has been defamed, because he has indicated that the cleaner doesn't have any decency.

 

.... you are behaving like a b*****d".

 

Ineloquent, but not libellous - he's saying that you behave like someone who was born out of wedlock, or that you behave like a person that other people have a tendency to dislike. Unless there is some other context; for example you are a clergyman and your religion isn't tolerant of sex out of wedlock, this isn't enough to be libellous.

 

"would you like me to pay u in {foreign currency name}. I have a lot left over from my last trip ... I have just come from {country name} and {country name} and had some notes".

It could quite legitimately be taken as a sincere question, and as someone else has posted he could allege you'd had a conversation leading to him asking this.

 

Racism

 

The comments could easily be taken as racist. That however is not sufficient for them to be criminal in nature. The criminal laws relating to racism, excluding those for sport etc, basically provide two particularly relevant offences for racism, one being public order, the other harassment.

 

His comments are not a public order offence because they were not made in public. If he'd posted them on a forum, they could have been considered a public order offence in principle. However, for the offence to be complete the statement would have to be such that a person of reasonable firmness would have been alarmed, harassed, or distressed by the statement. To be honest, I'm not sure that such a person would have felt alarmed, harassed or distressed because of them.

 

His comments are not yet harassment because he hasn't made enough of them. If he continues to make them, they might well become so.

 

HTH

[sophes]

i suffered similar comments by a landlord,via text message. I showed them to the police and he was paid a visit to his place of business, questioned and given a fixed penalty notice of £60. I can't remember the specific name of the offence, but it was something about using a communications device to intimidate or cause offence. I know it vague, but it was 2 years ago.

 

It caused him major ructions at work (he was the financial director of a company) and it hit him in the pocket and reputation.

[sisternumber1]

you're right gyzmo ...

 

 

 

i'll refuse to do any more work for him, but he'll just email the same again in retaliation. If he knows nothing can be done, what's to stop him spamming me again and again with these comments?

 

That then becomes harrasment and a totally different ball game - there is effective remedy against harrassment, but dont incite him to harrass you - ignore him, hold your head up high and keep all emails that are sent to you and whatever you do dont respond to them. If it does happen go to your local police and report it. I will try find the links regarding protection from harrassment etc. Please note that all Police forces in the UK are supposed to take racial harrassment seriously indeed our Police website points to that as a one of their number one priorities.

[tifo]

I will try find the links regarding protection from harrassment etc. Please note that all Police forces in the UK are supposed to take racial harrassment seriously indeed our Police website points to that as a one of their number one priorities.

 

Thanks, i have the harassment law details, s.40 etc.

[tifo]

He has implied you might have financial problems, but on its own that isn't necessarily libellous. How much was the amount?

 

This doesn't defame you because comparing you to a cleaner doesn't damage your reputation. Conversely though, his office cleaner has been defamed, because he has indicated that the cleaner doesn't have any decency.

 

It could quite legitimately be taken as a sincere question, and as someone else has posted he could allege you'd had a conversation leading to him asking this.

 

The amount was less than £200 (yes, i do work for this but it was a deal agreed a few years ago and i kept to it) and it does not in any way solve my financial problems.

 

I have been defamed because he is saying the cleaner has more decency than me, implying that cleaners have lower decency than most people and i am lower than that.

 

I live and work in the UK, have done all my life. I hold nationality by birth. I do not work or live on any foreign country, therefore any other currency than Pounds Sterling is no use to me. The comment was made because of my ethnic origins. In that sense it is based on race only.

[seftonview]

The amount was less than £200.

 

A statement of that amount would not be sufficient to be defaming, because nobody would take seriously someone saying that £200 (or indeed less) would solve all of your financial problems.

 

Further:

 

They aren't libellous. Firstly because he hasn't circulated them to other people...

 

 

I have been defamed because he is saying the cleaner has more decency than me, implying that cleaners have lower decency than most people and i am lower than that.

 

But he implied that to you, not to someone else.

 

He can say what he likes to you if it is about you, and it will never be defamatory. It's when the comments are made to other people. This is why the comment is defamatory of the cleaner (because you are a third party).

 

I live and work in the UK, have done all my life. I hold nationality by birth. I do not work or live on any foreign country, therefore any other currency than Pounds Sterling is no use to me. The comment was made because of my ethnic origins. In that sense it is based on race only.

 

I don't agree, it could reasonably be taken as sincere. If it had been worded differently, it could have been unequivocally racially motivated; but in that form it isn't. Bear in mind that allegations of racism (criminal) must be proven beyond reasonable doubt. Reasonable doubt exists.

Edited October 4, 2008 by seftonview

[Weird Al Yankovic]

[/left]

 

 

 

I have been defamed because he is saying the cleaner has more decency than me, implying that cleaners have lower decency than most people and i am lower than that.

 

 

His cleaner. That's not cleaners in general.

 

Do you know the character of his cleaner?

 

Just pay a visit to the police with your emails as any other route will be costly and with little chance of success.

[p_cas]

I'm sorry, but we've all had to deal with stuff like this in our lives that's hurt our feelings, whether we're black, white, brown or whatever colour or race. Just forget about it and him and move on. It's not unique to you because your ethnic or whatever. Youre wasting your time and energy thinking up ways to get back at him. Move on and forget about him.

[TheChancellor]

I'm sorry, but we've all had to deal with stuff like this in our lives that's hurt our feelings, whether we're black, white, brown or whatever colour or race. Just forget about it and him and move on. It's not unique to you because your ethnic or whatever. Youre wasting your time and energy thinking up ways to get back at him. Move on and forget about him.

 

Seconded.I can't believe you have let it rob you of a whole week nearly.

 

Not very nice,granted, but if you have a look at a few of the threads on here you will find lots of us who would gladly swap places with you if that was all we had to worry about.

 

We might then be able to answer the phone & not hide when the postie is spotted.

 

MOVE ON.

[tifo]

We might then be able to answer the phone & not hide when the postie is spotted.

 

MOVE ON.

 

Yes, OK. I'll let it be for now.

 

If you look at my other posts and threads, i'm not exactly solvent and have more problems to worry about than this. I do answer then phone now because it's enjoyable talking to them and do wait for the postie to bring me my next lot of write offs (unenforceable agreement) and bank charges payments.

 

Thanks.