The awaited European Court of Justice decision has arrived.  This has confirmed that EU law does not prohibit discrimination on the grounds of obesity but that conditions associated with the obesity could amount to a disability.  The case set out a test where the long-term physical, mental or psychological impairments may hinder the full and effective participation in a professional life, particularly where obesity results in reduced mobility or causes other conditions.

The case was a Danish case and it has followed the earlier advocate general’s opinion on the case.  The case has now been remitted back to the Danish Court for it to determine whether in that case the Claimant’s obesity met the necessary conditions to make it a disability.