Legal Update: Recent Discrimination Case Uplifts Potential Damages for “Injury to Feelings”

In Hong Kong, statutory damages for “injury to feelings” can be awarded to victims of unlawful discrimination pursuant to specific provisions of the relevant discrimination Ordinances. The amount of damages for injury to feelings broadly follows the so called “Vento scale” established in the United Kingdom case of Vento v Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police [2002] EWCA Civ 1871.

In the recent District Court decision of 陳詠琴 及 第一流行鋼琴教室有限公司 [2024] HKDC 2046 (“Decision”) the Court awarded damages for injury to feelings to a victim of disability discrimination, and reviewed and adjusted for inflation the applicable bands on the Vento scale as applied in Hong Kong.

We have previously written about the increase in the bands in the UK in the case of Da’Bell v NSPCC and predicted that it was likely that Hong Kong would see a corresponding increase. This Decision confirms that Hong Kong will increase the bands from time to time, including by reference to the effects of inflation. Below is a table showing the progression of the increase in the bands in the UK and in Hong Kong: –

We consider this to be a necessary and timely adjustment of the bands of compensation on the Vento scale (which represents about 60% increase from the original range in each band). This also means that employers may be at greater risk of financial damages should they be found in breach of any act of unlawful discrimination.

Russell Bennett and Mark Chiu

For more information on employment matters, please contact:

Russell Bennett
Partner | Email

Mark Chiu
Consultant | Email

Disclaimer: This publication is general in nature and is not intended to constitute legal advice. You should seek professional advice before taking any action in relation to the matters dealt with in this publication.