A recent US District Court ruling should give comfort to foreign companies that cannot reasonably be expected to conduct all of their business in English.

Japan’s third-largest bank, Mizhuo Bank, has been sued by a former vice-president employed at its New York office, who claims he faced discrimination as a non-Japanese-speaking employee.

David Kurtanidze sought $10m (£8m) in damages after allegedly being denied promotions at Mizuho and being treated differently from Japanese co-workers.