A young lawyer who was fired after chucking a sickie to attend a footy game has claimed he was suffering from burnout at the time. 

Commercial lawyer Mitchell Fuller was fired by Melbourne law firm Madison Branson Lawyers in August after the firm discovered he had attended last year’s AFL Gather Round in Adelaide while claiming to be too unwell to work. 

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) law week rejected the former Victorian Greens candidate’s unfair dismissal claim finding Mr Fuller had acted ‘dishonestly and misled the firm’. 

‘Mr Fuller’s conduct and attitude was utterly incompatible with his ongoing employment as a solicitor at the firm, where integrity and honesty are paramount,’ wrote FWC deputy president Andrew Bell. 

While Mr Fuller said he respected the FWC’s decision, he told the Herald Sun his story revealed the inadequate workplace protections for neurodivergent people. 

‘If you’re neurodivergent, under pressure, and trying to manage a health condition without support, how likely are you to document every detail yourself, or get yourself into a psychologist’s office that very week?’ he said. 

‘We need a better system that supports workers before they burn out, not one that punishes them after. As a society at large, we need to quit snickering at the idea of “mental health days” and start writing them explicitly into our workplace laws.

‘Employees shouldn’t have to over-explain, self-diagnose, or conjure up evidence to justify the simple act of looking after themselves. It’s completely absurd.’

Commercial lawyer Mitchell Fuller (pictured) was fired by Melbourne law firm Madison Branson Lawyers in August after the firm discovered he had attended last year's AFL Gather Round in Adelaide while claiming to be too unwell to work

Commercial lawyer Mitchell Fuller (pictured) was fired by Melbourne law firm Madison Branson Lawyers in August after the firm discovered he had attended last year’s AFL Gather Round in Adelaide while claiming to be too unwell to work

According to Mr Fuller, the weekend in Adelaide helped him to return to work 'clearer, calmer and more productive than I'd been in ages' (the 2024 AFL Gather Round is pictured)

According to Mr Fuller, the weekend in Adelaide helped him to return to work ‘clearer, calmer and more productive than I’d been in ages’ (the 2024 AFL Gather Round is pictured)

Mr Fuller described the turnover at the firm as ‘relentless’ and alleged he was already the longest-serving staff member after just six months into the job. 

Deciding he needed to take time off from the demands of his work, he agreed to attend the AFL’s Gather Round with friends after initially declining the invitation. 

He applied for personal leave for Friday April 5, claiming he had a ‘tough time sleeping last night and am not feeling up to coming into the office’. 

He signed a statutory declaration supporting this leave request.  

He then followed up with a separate leave request on Monday April 8 in which he told his employers he was ‘still in a bit of discomfort today and don’t think I can hack taking public transport’. 

To support the Monday leave request, he submitted a medical certificate obtained from an online provider. 

According to Mr Fuller, the time off helped him to return to work ‘clearer, calmer and more productive than I’d been in ages’. 

The solicitor is diagnosed with ADHD, a condition he claimed was compounded at the time by a national shortage in his prescribed medication.

Mr Fuller (pictured) is diagnosed with ADHD, a condition he claimed was compounded at the time by a national shortage in his prescribed medication

Mr Fuller (pictured) is diagnosed with ADHD, a condition he claimed was compounded at the time by a national shortage in his prescribed medication

‘My thoughts scattered, anxiety surged, and my mind felt like a broken radio constantly flicking between channels,’ he told the Herald Sun. 

‘I could barely hold a conversation, let alone focus on legal drafting. The existing situation in the office became almost unbearable.

‘I was burning out on fast-forward.’

Three months after his trip to Adelaide, Mr Fuller was asked to attend a disciplinary meeting and sent a letter listing a number of mostly minor complaints including a dress code violation. 

He rescheduled the meeting to bring a support person from the Australian Services Union.

But shortly before the meeting, he was sent a list of further complaints including that he had wrongfully claimed to have been sick when he applied for leave in April. 

‘I was baffled. My understanding was that personal leave was available when you’re unfit for work due to illness or injury. I didn’t realise you had to be coughing and spluttering to qualify,’ he said. 

He alleged the leave complaints were not discussed at the meeting and he had no opportunity to respond before he received a subsequent termination letter. 

Mr Fuller said he was feeling burnt out when he applied for the leave, adding the turnover at Madison Branson Lawyers (pictured) was 'relentless'

Mr Fuller said he was feeling burnt out when he applied for the leave, adding the turnover at Madison Branson Lawyers (pictured) was ‘relentless’

The letter contained accusations he had submitted a false statutory declaration and made false leave requests. 

Mr Bell said the solicitor’s dishonesty was unfitting for a legal practitioner when he handed down his ruling last week. 

‘The most generous conclusion that could be made is that Mr Fuller was simply indifferent to the accuracy of his witness statement to the point of falsity,’ he said. 

‘Either way, it is conduct no witness should engage in; for a practising solicitor giving evidence about a critical event, it is inexcusable.’

Madison Branson Lawyers was contacted by Daily Mail Australia.  

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