The attorney General for Northern Ireland has referred the Damages (Asbestos-Related Conditions) Bill to the UK Supreme Court. People in Northern Ireland who suffer from asbestos-related diseases will be allowed to sue those responsible for damages.
The court will hear the case in June.
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Two clauses added by the Northern Ireland Assembly are up for judicial review.
“The Bill seeks to allow persons who have developed pleural plaques on their lungs - a form of scarring of the outer lining of the lung - following asbestos exposure to sue those allegedly responsible. In 2007, a House of Lords judgement held that symptomless pleural plaques were not actionable damage which prevented people successfully suing.” According to UTV.
Evidence of asbestos-related diseases has been around since the 1st century A.D., when the Roman historian Pliny the Elder noted that asbestos miners were dying younger than other slaves. However, the first recorded cases of asbestos disease in the United States were not diagnosed until 1935. Since then, medical research has linked asbestos exposure to numerous life-threatening illnesses and conditions. These include: Mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer, gastrointestinal cancer, laryngeal cancer, pharyngeal cancer and esophageal cancer.
People who work with asbestos-containing materials and products on a regular basis account for the highest levels of asbestos exposure. Certain jobs and work environments, like mining, factory work, ship building, and construction work, are more likely to result in asbestos exposure than others.
If you believe you may have been exposed to asbestos and have developed on the above diseases as a result you may want to consider calling an asbestos attorney to discuss your legal options. A qualified mesothelioma attorney can help you get the compensation that you and your family need and deserve.
Asbestos attorneys have helped thousands of mesothelioma patients win compensation for lost wages and medical costs.