Workplace Investigations – Quarterly Review – Edition 6
29 June 2026
In this Quarterly Review, we spotlight the global impact of AI on workplace investigations. We examine how AI is reshaping the fact-finding process and explore the opportunities and risks of AI-assisted investigations, including recent privilege decisions, the evidential significance of AI prompts in disciplinary proceedings and the growing challenge of AIgenerated evidence.
We also consider the implications for employers of AI-generated complaints and grievances and examine a recent Australian decision in which the Fair Work Commission held that an employee’s excessive use of AI to generate adversarial communications during an investigation made him “ungovernable” and justified dismissal.
Beyond AI, we consider several significant legislative and case law developments that could reshape the investigations landscape.
In the UK, from October 2026, the Employment Rights Act 2025 ("ERA") will impose an enhanced duty on employers to take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual harassment and impose liability for third-party harassment (of any type) of employees at work. Employers will therefore need to plan how they investigate incidents involving third parties such as customers and suppliers. We also look ahead to the removal of the qualifying period for unfair dismissal protection and the statutory compensation cap from January 2027, which will significantly increase the stakes of dismissal decisions, particularly for senior and regulated employees.
We also consider the implications of the Crime and Policing Act 2026 in the UK, which from 29 June 2026 introduces a new statutory route to corporate criminal liability where a senior manager commits an offence within the scope of their authority – a compliance and governance development and one which may become the focus of future workplace investigations.
In France, recent case law provides further clarity over the scope of employers’ obligations to conduct internal investigations and the procedural rights of employees and we consider developments in Spain, where a new Independent Whistleblower Protection Authority ("AINPI") has been established to oversee internal reporting systems.
In a financial services sector focus this Quarter we consider the impact on workplace investigations of the first wave of changes implementing the streamlining of the Senior Managers Certification Regime ("SMCR") and in particular guidance on what can be said about unfinished workplace investigations within a regulatory reference, the interaction of privilege with disclosure duties, and individual senior management responsibilities.
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