Autoclenz Ltd v Belcher

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Overview

The Supreme Court has upheld the Court of Appeal’s decision that car valets whose contracts said they were self employed, were actually employees. In determining contractor/employee status, express terms in a written contract, such as the right to send a replacement worker, are not necessarily conclusive if they are inconsistent with the way the relationship is actually intended to work in practice. Indeed, express contractual terms may be disregarded where they don’t reflect the parties’ actual agreement – an intention to deceive a third party isn’t required.
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