University of Leeds law student defeats overpayment claim by former employers

Hazem Ezzeldin, 20, was taken to court by trampoline park owners Gravity Active Entertainment who filed a claim of overpayment during Furlough.

The trampoline park claimed that they had overpaid him during the furlough period, when he worked there as a crew member.

Hazem declined to specify the amount that was being claimed from him but County Courts only deal with claims less than £10,000.

The student read through the Employment Rights Act 1996 and also read different case studies of people who have also been told by their employers they had been overpaid.

Despite thinking he was going to lose the case, Hazem won and hasn't had to pay a penny back to his former employer.

The second-year University of Leeds student said: "I was over the moon and didn't believe it.

"I genuinely thought I was going to lose because as it was my first case, I stumbled on my words and I wasn't very confident at first.

"I was very happy because I didn't expect it if I'm being honest."

He was left anxious when the he received an email saying the park in Dartford, Kent – where he worked for eight months during his gap year – had filed the claim against him.

But he says then he realised that this was a 'once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that not many 19/20 year olds get.'

And two years after the company filed the claim, Hazem represented himself at Dartford County Court – using the knowledge he learnt from his university studies.

Hazem added: "My tutor has reposted my posts about it and he sent me a few good words about it.

"I loved working there, it was amazing.

"The majority of my time there was amazing, I really enjoyed it.

"I don't hate the trampoline park and I don't want people to think that I've had a bad time there or I didn't enjoy it or that I hated the people there.

"I still have respect for the place because I've gained so much from it.

"But obviously we just had a legal issue."

Hazem, from Dartford, Kent, has described the experience as 'amazing' and he plans to become a corporate solicitor at a Magic Circle firm in the future.

A Magic Circle law firm is a nickname for London's most prestigious multinational law firms.

He said: "This was an amazing experience. I can't wait to taste a victory with Clifford Charles or another one of the top firms I want to work at."

Gravity Active Entertainment have been contacted for a comment.