Facts
X. AG is a one-woman corporation that operates a fiduciary office. The plaintiff A. was employed part-time by the defendant since November 1, 1999. On May 25, 2001, she was summarily dismissed by the defendant, allegedly because she had an affair with the managing director B.'s husband. A. then filed a claim for compensation for lost wages, overtime, and vacation pay, as well as compensation under Art. 337c para. 3 CO. The High Court of the Canton of Zurich reduced the awarded amount, but denied a claim for vacation pay and compensation under Art. 337c para. 3 CO. The plaintiff filed a federal appeal against this decision.Considerations
Under Art. 337 CO, the employer or the employee may terminate the employment relationship at any time for good cause. Good cause is considered to be any circumstance in which, in good faith, the terminating party cannot be expected to continue the employment relationship. However, summary dismissal is only justified in the case of particularly serious misconduct by the employee and must be assumed with great restraint.
Objective reasons can exceptionally justify extraordinary termination of the contract if they so undermine the essential foundations of the contractual bond that the continuation of the contractual relationship appears subjectively and objectively unreasonable. However, the incident alone is generally not sufficient to justify summary dismissal as a…