A female lawyer demanding £19 million in compensation for workplace bullying faked a nervous breakdown to secure a higher payout, an Employment Tribunal heard today.

Gill Switalski, 51, the former head of legal at Foreign & Colonial Asset Management (F&C), pretended her ordeal left her unfit to work so that she could sue for loss of her career and future earnings, it was claimed.

While Mrs Switalski claimed bullying from male colleagues had left her in such poor mental health that she was unable to read a newspaper, she was in fact interviewing for jobs at two rival City firms at around the same time, F&C’s lawyers said. One interview led to a job offer at Royal London, a rival asset manager, that Ms Switalski initially accepted before changing her mind.

The allegations emerged during a hearing at the Central London Employment Tribunal today. The hearing had been intended to fix the amount of compensation that Mrs Switalski would receive after two previous Employment Tribunals ruled she had been subject to discrimination, harassment and victimisation at F&C.

Lawyers for F&C, which has always denied the claims and is preparing a further appeal, asked the Tribunal to consider reviewing its original decision on the basis of new evidence.

This evidence, introduced today by Monica Carss-Fisk, QC, for F&C, shows Mrs Switalksi to be a “very plausible liar” who is “prepared to mislead her employer and the Tribunal”, she said.

Revelations that Mrs Switalksi was “very actively engaged” in seeking employment while claiming to seriously ill “fundamentally undermine her credibility,” meaning that “much if not all of the evidence [she gave at the original Tribunal] must be discounted,” Ms Carrs-Fisk said.

The Tribunal chairman, the equivalent of a judge, must decide whether the new evidence is sufficient to order a retrial of the entire case. The Chairman can amend their original ruling without ordering a new hearing although this is unusual.

The hearing continues.

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