Asbestos

BBC Radio 4's Law in Action was broadcast on Tuesday, 20 June, 2006 at 1600 BST.

A recent House of Lords judgement has changed the legal landscape for thousands of people, mainly men, seeking compensation for the asbestos-related cancer, mesothelioma.

It used to be possible for those people who developed mesothelioma to sue any one of their past employers who had not protected them from asbestos fibres, and claim 100 per cent of damages from that single employer.

The tables have turned with the Lords decision in the Barker vs Corus case. Now the mesothelioma sufferers must seek out every past employer, and sue each one of them in order to claim the full amount of compensation. This can prove difficult because mesothelioma has a long incubation period, and can develop some thirty or forty years after exposure to asbestos fibres. It is often hard to trace all previous employers, as many companies have gone out of business, as have their insurers.

Last week, the Prime Minister said that he regretted this judgment, and that the government was looking for the best opportunity to change it. But is it fair to expect a company to pay all of the damages just because other employers cannot be traced?

Law in Action speaks to Kenneth Hammill - who was diagnosed with mesothelioma in February of this year - as well as lawyers representing both sides of the case. Bridget Prentice, Minister at the Department for Constitutional Affairs, explains how the government is planning to resolve this issue.

Contributors:
Kenneth Hammill - mesothelioma patient
Nicholas Pargeter - Senior Partner, Berrymans Lace Mawer
James Thompson - Solicitor, John Pickering and Partners
Bridget Prentice MP - Department for Constitutional Affairs