Why can employers be held liable for any acts of harassment that occur at a Christmas party?

Seamus:  Well, the general position in relation to vicarious liability is that the employer can be held as vicariously liable where the employee carries out any sort of discriminatory acts or acts of harassment in the course of their employment. So that's the basic position. If it's something that happens in work, the employer can be liable.

And the reason why it can apply to a work social event is that the courts have been very clear that those work events that take place outside of the office and outside of normal working hours are viewed as events that are regarded as an extension of the workplace. So, the law is very clear in relation to that.

So, what that means is that if you're