ADHD tribunal victory: Lidl manager awarded £45,000 after 'lack of remorse' claim

A deputy store manager at Lidl who was dismissed after a disciplinary hearing that failed to consider his ADHD has been awarded more than £45,000 by an employment tribunal. Ryan Toghill, who had disclosed his diagnosis to his employers, was called to a meeting after breaking company rules by using equipment he hadn't been trained to use. He was then dismissed for gross misconduct. Toghill successfully appealed the decision but was offered only a lower-paid role, which he rejected. He took his case to tribunal, where a judge found that Lidl had not fully taken his ADHD into account during the disciplinary process. The tribunal ruled that reasonable adjustments—such as additional breaks—had not been offered. It also noted that a manager had described Toghill as showing "a lack of remorse," a characterization the tribunal found was clearly linked to communication differences associated with ADHD. "I don't show a lot of emotions," Toghill explained. "I could be incredibly happy, angry, upset, or remorseful, and my facial expressions and tone of voice would essentially remain the same." The tribunal upheld parts of his claims for unfair dismissal, wrongful dismissal and a failure to make reasonable adjustments. Lidl said it is "committed to ensuring that everyone receives the reasonable adjustments, clear communication and support they need to thrive." Campaigners, lawyers and HR teams say cases like Toghill's highlight a shift that businesses should be paying attention to. Since the pandemic, diagnosis rates for ADHD and autism have been rising, and they are featuring more regularly in employment tribunal disputes. The Equality Act 2010 may protect neurodivergent individuals as disabled, even without a formal diagnosis, if they can show their condition has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on daily activities. These protections are not limited to work tasks. For example, in a 2025 tribunal, a software engineer with ADHD was found to have faced discrimination because a manager sighed and made other expressions of frustration.