Dr Jonathan Thompson and Dr Ryan Falzon from the Civil law and litigation department have been appointed to represent Dr Naged Megally in a constitutional case filed on the 11th February 2020 before the First Hall of the Civil Court in its Constitutional jurisdiction. Dr Megally is a leading Maltese specialist in fetal medicine and is a resident specialist in obstetrics and gynaecology at Mater Dei Hospital in Malta.

The case concerns claims by Dr Megally of discriminatory, inhumane and degrading treatment by the management of Mater Dei Hospital.

In the application filed, Dr Megally submitted to the court that, he had initially raised the issue with the senior management of the Hospital, but was warned not to escalate the complaint any further, as he would be dismissed from his employment with the Hospital. Dr Megally further submitted that he later raised a formal complaint with the Minister of Health, who launched an internal inquiry to investigate the complaint, but following the conclusion of the said inquiry, he was not provided with a copy of the report and was simply informed that his case was being rejected.

Dr Megally had filed a judicial protest against Mater Dei Hospital's CEO, the Minister of Health, the members of the Board of Inquiry and the management of the Hospital, calling upon them to remedy the situation. However, Dr Megally states that the defendants retaliated by attempting to terminate his employment with the Hospital on the basis of his disability.

Dr Megally subsequently took the matter before the First Hall of the Civil Court in its Constitutional jurisdiction, and is requesting the court to declare that the actions of Mater Dei Hospital and the Minister of Health amount to degrading and inhumane treatment which violate the fundamental human rights protected by the Constitution of Malta and the European Convention of Fundamental Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, and that the decisions and actions of the said Mater Dei Hospital and the Minister of Health were prompted by discriminatory motivations based on his disability, which behaviour is also in clear violation of the Constitution of Malta and the European Convention of Fundamental Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. Dr Megally has also requested the court to provide directions so that the illegal behaviour ceases and to provide further remedies to address the breach of fundamental rights, including the payment of adequate compensation.

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