In Spijkers v Gebroeders Benedik Abbatoir CV 24/85 [1986] ECR 1119 ECJ, the European Court of Justice ruled that Article 1(1) of the Acquired Rights Directive must be interpreted to the effect that the expression 'transfer of an undertaking, business or part of a business to another employer' envisages the case in which the business in question retains its identity.
In Delabole Slate Ltd v Berriman the Court of Appeal upholds the EAT's decision that a dismissal which occurs as a consequence of a change in terms of employment following the transfer of an undertaking is not a dismissal for "an economic, technical or organisational reason entailing changes in the workforce", and so is automatically unfair under reg.8(1) of the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 1981.