An in-house lawyer has taken her company to an employment tribunal for unfair dismissal and sex discrimination. She has slammed its "chauvinistic" culture, citing in particular the time a colleague showed her a nude portrait of his wife.

Margaret Rowe, who accuses Fidelity Worldwide investment of passing her over for promotion because she is a woman, was fired after an internal investigation decided there was no evidence of sex discrimination or bullying. Rowe told the tribunal that she spoke to HR when a manager circulated photos of a naked portrait of his wife, Caius economist Dr Victoria Bateman. Rowe told the tribunal, "it is unusual for a male boss to send to women on his staff a nude portrait with no context" and said many people felt "awkward", adding, "the women did not know how to react or not to react".

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Rowe's manager, Philip Warland, admitted that he described her as having the "maturity of an eight year old" in an email to their boss. But he denied that she was treated differently because she was a woman, saying she was "abusive". He claimed that on one occasion she argued with such "startling vehemence and ferocity" that he vomited.

Rowe says that men in the office could "not countenance the fact I was a woman who was assertive and forthright", and that she was regarded as aggressive because she used red capital letters in her emails, which she only later appreciated came across as shouting.

The tribunal continues.
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