UK mid-market private equity firm HgCapital has settled a sex discrimination claim made by a senior female director shortly before the case was due to appear in court, in one of the first signs that such claims could be on the rise in the Square Mile.

Jill Ridley-Smith, a former employee, and Hg had been due to appear at the London Employment Tribunal yesterday over allegations that she was the subject of sex discrimination. However it is thought that Hg settled the case on Friday. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.