How to present a discrimination claim. Handbook on seeking remedies under the EU Non-discrimination Directives

Summary:

Citizens across the European Union need to know more not only about their right to equal treatment but also about the legal and other avenues they can pursue when seeking to remedy a violation of this right. Surveys, such as successive Eurobarometers, indicate a relatively low awareness of the Non-discrimination Directives. Not many cases are brought to the courts, equality bodies or other competent authorities. Building on the strengths and weaknesses of existing anti-discrimination handbooks, and focusing on a much wider non-specialist audience, this Handbook addresses those who seek and provide general legal aid in the non-discrimination field.

How will you know if you have faced discrimination? Simple answers cannot be given to such a complex question. It is better to answer this short question with another short question: but for your disability, age, ethnicity, race, religion or sexual orientation would you have been treated otherwise? If the answer is yes, this Handbook includes details that help you identify discrimination and decide whether such discrimination is unlawful.

Once you are certain that you have suffered discrimination, many more questions need to be clarified. The Handbook is there to help you to ask all the important questions and find the right answers. Sometimes the answers will be discouraging – especially when it comes to predicting your chances of succeeding with a legal challenge. Still, being able to properly identify discrimination provides a certain amount of reassurance that you are in the right. You can also draw reassurance from the fact that a support system has been created for you under European law. When you know or suspect that you have been discriminated against, before taking any legal action, be sure to seek advice and assistance from a specialised equality body, a non-governmental organisation and/or a trade union. Equality bodies are the most specialised, accessible and cheapest providers of advice, assistance and more on discrimination.

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