Ive been contacted by a previous direct report to be a reference for a job application they're making. However, they were semi-recently dismissed for 2 counts of gross misconduct (social media policy & staff-student conduct policy). For context, this individual is now suing my employer because they think they got dismissed for disability discrimination.
Some part of me wants to tell them to go away and never contact me again after being this person's "support they bring into HR meetings" and learning what happened. But part of me feels a duty to let their employer know about the misconduct as I'd feel horrifically guilty if this person did what they did again..
How do I approach this? How can I write a bullet proof reference that informs the prospective employer without opening myself up to being sued or something? Do I say yes to being a reference but get my HR department to write the matter of fact for me?