UK actors’ union Equity loses legal case against casting directory Spotlight

Actors’ union Equity has lost its long-running legal case against casting directory Spotlight over its use of membership fees.

The dispute between the two UK bodies has raged on for almost two years, with Equity calling for Spotlight to be considered an employment agency by law and criticising its charging of a fee regardless of whether the actor finds work.

In a decision handed down in London’s High Court, Judge Catherine Howells dismissed Equity’s claim that Spotlight should be classed as an “employment agency” and confirmed that the directory is “a marketing tool” and “a number of steps away from a service for the purpose of finding persons employment. The ambit and role of Spotlight’s directory is narrow”.

The ruling continued, “If, by analogy (and I accept that no analogy is perfect), a dating service allowed a person to upload a profile, and that led to a relationship and ultimately marriage, would it be said that the dating service was providing a service for the purpose of creating marriages?”

Howells said she would have “very real difficulty, on the evidence, in concluding that the fees charged by the defendant were more than a reasonable estimate of costs”.

Matt Hood, Spotlight’s managing director, responded to today’s (September 3) ruling by saying he is “pleased” but that the legal proceedings have been “an enormous waste of both organisations’ time” and a “publicity stunt” for the union. 

An Equity spokesperson, however, said “worrying are the implications for working people across the UK, who may now be left unprotected from up-front charges by similar platforms elsewhere in the growing gig economy”.

The union says it is considering launching a legal appeal.

The ruling noted the potential consequences to Spotlight if it were declared to be an employment agency and one that has not followed the conduct regulations. “It may face prosecution and the risk of substantial financial penalties. This is not the position that has been taken by the regulators: they have never brought such an action. However, the potential consequences to the defendant would be significant.” 

Spotlight currently charges £205.80 for an annual subscription for performers based in the UK and Ireland. 

Spotlight and Equity reactions

“I am pleased that the High Court has shared our long-stated and widely shared position that Spotlight is not an employment agency,” said Spotlight’s Hood.


“This judgment secures the services we have offered actors for almost a century and is a testament to the integrity of our operations and the strength of our legal standing. It validates our commitment to providing equitable access for performers to this entertainment industry and allows us to focus fully again on providing a great service to our members. 

“Any determination that Spotlight was an agency would have been more than just a blow to common sense; it would have disempowered actors from choosing how they advertise their services and build their careers.

“Equity’s decision to launch legal proceedings against Spotlight has been an enormous waste of both organisations’ time and resources – and actors’ subscriptions – when the industry faces a raft of external challenges that require a collective, measured response. Spotlight has repeatedly called for dialogue to avoid costly legal proceedings.

“We strongly believe that Equity launched cynical, performative and expensive legal proceedings against Spotlight as a publicity stunt with the objective of damaging its oldest ally. Equity members should rightly question the decisions made in their name that have led to this unnecessary action.

“We urge Equity to return to the dialogue between our two organisations that endured for the 97 years prior to this action so that we can continue working together to ensure that performers can benefit from sustainable and fulfilling professional careers, and that they are rightly recognised as crucial to the success of the creative industries.”

An Equity spokesperson stated: “Today’s judgment from the High Court is disappointing for Equity’s 50,000 members… The common sense understanding of Spotlight’s purpose is to provide services for the purposes of finding persons employment; any actor will tell you that they subscribe to Spotlight to find work.  

“The judgment states that Spotlight is ‘a marketing tool to promote the identity and skill set of the performer’, which, if correct, would leave the traditional assertion that they are the ‘home of casting’ in doubt. Casting is our industry’s term for the exchange and supply of labour for performing in productions, and this judgment finds that Spotlight’s role in that is, at best, incidental.

“Equally worrying are the implications for working people across the UK, who may now be left unprotected from up-front charges by similar platforms elsewhere in the growing gig economy.

“Equity has had a number of considerations following the ruling. The legal merits of appeal on the basis of the current legislation and regulations are under active consideration by our legal team. We have already made contact with the wider trades union movement and the Labour government today, both of whom were waiting on this judgment to consider their collective response. Equity Council meets next Tuesday, and a further update to members following their deliberations will follow.

“We must also put on record our thanks to the claimants in this case, and to all the members who are backing this David versus Goliath campaign. It is incumbent on the union to be brave in challenging abuses of power in the industry where we see it, and this disappointing initial ruling will not deter us from continuing to take the fight to our industry’s gatekeepers.”

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