NDAs in Sexual Misconduct Cases: Protection or Pitfall?
The Women and Equalities Committee (WEC) has reignited a crucial debate by calling for a ban on non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) in cases of sexual misconduct, bullying, and discrimination. The push stems from shocking evidence of deeply rooted misogyny in the UK’s music industry, where survivors are routinely silenced by settlement agreements designed to protect employers rather than victims.
But while the intention behind banning NDAs is to empower victims to speak freely and prevent repeat offenses, legal experts warn that an outright prohibition may have serious unintended consequences.
David Greenhalgh, employment partner at Excello Law, points out a key challenge: “Many employers are unlikely to agree to a settlement without an NDA, meaning affected individuals may be left with the difficult choice of either dropping the matter or pursuing a lengthy tribunal process,” he explains. “Given the backlog in the tribunal system, that could take more than a year, creating further trauma for victims.”
NDAs are a long-standing feature of employment dispute resolution. They often form part of settlement agreements, offering a way for victims to secure financial compensation or other remedies without going through the stress, publicity, and time of formal legal action. However, critics argue that NDAs have evolved from legitimate legal tools into mechanisms of silence, protecting abusers and organizations at the expense of justice and transparency.
The WEC’s proposal has brought these uncomfortable trade-offs into sharp focus.
A Broader Cultural Problem
Beyond banning NDAs, Greenhalgh and other employment law specialists argue that deeper cultural change is required. “The focus should be on increasing female representation in senior roles and embedding zero-tolerance workplace cultures, especially in sectors like music where misogyny has been historically pervasive,” says Greenhalgh.
Cultural change means not only empowering victims to come forward, but also ensuring they are believed, supported, and given practical pathways to justice. It means fostering inclusive leadership and holding senior figures accountable when discrimination or harassment takes place on their watch.
Other Creative Industries Watching Closely
While the WEC has zeroed in on the music industry, the implications of an NDA ban could extend much further. Film, television, advertising, and other creative sectors have their own dark histories of silencing whistleblowers and survivors through restrictive agreements.
The #MeToo movement exposed countless examples of how powerful individuals, often shielded by NDAs, were able to continue abusing their positions for years. For advocates, a ban represents a way to break this cycle of silence once and for all.
However, practical considerations remain. Victims themselves sometimes prefer NDAs to protect their own privacy, avoid retraumatization, or simply move on. Critics of a ban warn that removing this option could remove agency from survivors who may not want their experiences made public through a drawn-out tribunal.
What Happens Next?
Given the Government’s crowded legislative agenda, experts say a blanket ban on NDAs is unlikely to happen overnight. But the conversation around NDAs, and whether they serve to protect or to silence, is becoming impossible to ignore.
In the meantime, calls are growing for stronger safeguards to prevent misuse of NDAs, such as:
• Independent legal advice for survivors before signing any agreement
• A legal requirement that NDAs cannot prevent victims from reporting criminal conduct
• Greater transparency about repeat abusers within organisations
The hope is that a more balanced, victim-centred framework could preserve the benefits of NDAs, financial closure, privacy, and speed, while removing their potential to enable systematic abuse.
Whether through legislation or cultural change, one thing is clear: industries that have historically relied on NDAs to keep misconduct hidden will face increasing pressure to change how they operate. The music industry may be in the spotlight today, but its reckoning could be just the beginning.