Bruising high-stakes game of finances in a low-key arena

A profits warning put paid to Philip Smith’s tenure at the insurer RSA. He claims he had no alternative but to leave, writes Kyran Fitzgerald.

The red brick offices of the Employment Appeals Tribunal could hardly be more different than the Four Courts, the venue for most high-stakes commercial legal encounters.

There is a civil service feel to the place. Strip lighting adorns the rooms where oxygen is at a premium on warmer days. The canteen staff are friendly, with fresh baked quiches.