STAN Mason, fired last September for gross misconduct from his post as principal of Glasgow Caledonian University, has this week claimed at an industrial tribunal that he was unfairly dismissed. Ian Truscott QC, counsel for the university, said that if the tribunal found Dr Mason had been unfairly dismissed, any compensation should be reduced to nil because of "subsequently discovered misconduct", which appeared in a report from the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council.
Dr Mason's lawyer, Alastair Cockburn, said the former principal was not guilty of any conduct that would justify summary dismissal. He is expected to argue that the university did not follow appropriate disciplinary procedures. Dr Mason was fired after an internal inquiry found he had abused his authority by intervening in staffing decisions which should have been left to university procedures. The tribunal continues.