Tea firm wants workers case heard in Kenya, not Scotland
By BBC, March 16, 2023The boss of a tea company being sued by 2,000 Kenyan farm workers has argued a Scottish court would not understand cultural issues that affect the case.
James Finlay Kenya Ltd is fighting a damages claim at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.
The tea pickers say they suffered musculoskeletal injuries because of working conditions. Musculoskeletal injury refers to damage that affects the bones, muscles, ligaments, nerves, or tendons resulting in pain.
But the firm’s managing director said they may have hurt their backs while carrying water as children.
JFK also argues the claims should be dealt with in Kenya, and not Scotland. It has its registered address in Aberdeen. Known in the Scottish legal system as group proceedings, the class action lawsuit was given permission to go ahead last January.
At the company’s request, Court of Session judge Lord Weir is now deciding whether it should proceed any further.
On the first day of proceedings, JFK’s Managing Director Simeon Hutchinson gave evidence in person having flown to Edinburgh from Kenya. In a statement submitted to the court, he argued that the Scottish court “would not understand the culture in Kenya.”
He suggested that some of the claimants were likely to have suffered musculoskeletal injuries while carrying water when they were children. Hutchinson said the court would not be aware of how this “cultural difference” would impact on the damages claims.
The tea pickers’ lawyers say the Scottish court gives them the best chance of “securing justice.”
The firm is arguing the workers’ claims could be dealt with by Kenya’s Work Injuries Benefit Act (WIBA). Hutchinson told the court: “Before WIBA, when ambulance chasing was rife in Kenya, lawyers had an incentive to look for injury cases because they could make a lot of money. A key issue at the hearing is jurisdiction, and whether the Scottish court is the most appropriate forum for the claims.