The director of equality investigations, Ms Melanie Pine, has awarded £1,000 damages to a Traveller discriminated against by a publican.
The 2000 Equal Status Act outlaws discrimination in the provision of services against people on nine named grounds, including gender, race and religion.
The publican, Mr Luke Carney of Carney's Bar, Ballinrobe, Co Mayo, claimed that Mr Tom Conroy had been refused service because of the risk of disorderly conduct. He produced evidence of a conviction for such conduct on the part of Mr Conroy in the past.
However, the equality officer found that Mr Carney could not have known of this conviction at the time Mr Conroy was refused service.
The ruling found there was insufficient evidence that Mr Conroy posed any threat of disorderly conduct, and that the refusal to serve him was based on a bias against Travellers.
Publishing the decision, Ms Pine said that while the Act allowed for refusal of service in circumstances where the service-provider believed there was a risk of serious criminal or disorderly conduct, he/she must produce reasonable grounds for the opinion.