Friday, March 28, 2008
The British Lung Foundation has called upon the government to improve the coroner’s system for families victims of the asbestos related cancer, mesothelioma.
The BLF have been approached by the families of mesothelioma sufferers who believe that they have been treated in an insensitive way following the death of a loved one.
In an earlier report called “An Unnatural Death” the need for sensitivity by coroners in their investigations was highlighted and a call was made for the practice of sending uniformed officers in marked cars to the homes of recently bereaved families to be stopped.
The BLF are asking people to get involved by contacting their MP. Please click here for link to BLF website and details of how to contact your MP. The BLF also expressed their disappointment that important reforms would have been introduced in the new Coroners’ Bill, but that this legislation has not progressed through Parliament at the present time.
Commentary
John Pickering and Partners LLP is a leading firm of asbestos and industrial disease solicitors who have represented clients in successful asbestos disease claims for over 25 years. We have attended many inquests all over the country in deaths arising from industrial diseases such as mesothelioma and lung cancer. Our experience is that there has been a general improvement in the way that many coroners deal with mesothelioma cases, especially in areas that have a high prevalence of mesothelioma. Coroners in these areas generally try to deal with mesothelioma inquests in an efficient and sympathetic way. For example, where there is clear evidence of occupational asbestos exposure and the diagnosis of mesothelioma was clear enough during the sufferer’s lifetime, they may give the cause of death as industrial disease without a post mortem being performed, and will then have an inquest on papers only with no need for the family to attend and deal with all the formalities of a hearing in the coroners court.
However, some other coroners follow less helpful procedures. A minority of coroners refuse to let families see reports before the hearing. This can cause problems and lead to unpleasant surprises during the inquest. Fortunately, many coroners are happy to provide a copy of any post mortem report to the family/their solicitors before the hearing. This means that the family have a better understanding of the issues and what will happen and solicitors are better able to advise the family. This is consistent with the “cards on the table” approach that is encouraged in modern civil litigation. We think that this best practice should be adopted by all coroners’ courts and preferably formalised in legislation.
Another practice that we have reservations about is the use of asbestos fibre counts in mesothelioma cases. Mesothelioma is a cancer of the lining of the lungs and some other organs. The only known cause of mesothelioma is asbestos exposure. It is well established that mesothelioma can be can be caused by modest and brief exposures to asbestos. However, some coroners still continue to arrange for tests to be carried out by a specialist laboratory and if the tests do not show raised levels of asbestos fibres, they conclude that this was not an occupationally related mesothelioma ie they say that the asbestos fibres were within the “normal” background range. On this basis, open or even natural causes may be recorded as verdicts rather than industrial disease.
Whilst a finding of natural causes or an open verdict does not preclude a successful civil claim, it is another obstacle that the family have to overcome. It may deter some families from seeking legal advice or continuing with their claim. It can also have implications for the recovery of state benefits.
Some leading medical experts have expressed reservations about the use of these tests in mesothelioma cases. They point out that the tests have certain limitations. For example, the body clears asbestos fibres over the passage of time which will lead to results many years being falsely low and not proving how much asbestos was actually inhaled. Asbestos fibres are not spread out evenly through the lungs so samples from small sections may be falsely low. These figures for small sections are than multiplied which can amplify inconsistencies. Other reservations have been expressed and many doctors now believe that a low asbestos fibre count should not be more compelling than evidence from the victim or witnesses about how they were exposed to asbestos.
Nonetheless, some coroners persist in these tests and place great reliance upon them in mesothelioma cases, even where there is clear and powerful evidence of asbestos exposure.
We believe that there needs to be more consistency in the approach of coroners, to ensure that asbestos sufferers receive the best standards of service possible and that this is not dependent upon where they live. Otherwise, this will just be another form of postcode lottery. We hope that when the draft Coroners Bill is eventually enacted, some of these issues will have been addressed.
About John Pickering and Partners LLP- Specialist asbestos compensation solicitors
John Pickering and Partners LLP is a niche legal practice that has represented Claimants in the leading asbestos "test cases" in the last ten years. The firm represented Sylvia Barker in Barker v Corus (UK) Plc, a case that highlighted the legal tactics of employers and insurers trying to cut back their compensation liabilities to mesothelioma sufferers, and which prompted the amendment of the Compensation Act 2006 to ensure full compensation for mesothelioma claims. The firm represented two of the three Claimants in the Fairchild appeal, in which the insurance industry tried unsuccessfully to block compensation altogether for mesothelioma sufferers unable to identify which of two or more sources of asbestos exposure had caused their illness.
The firm represented Alice Jefferson, a mesothelioma sufferer, whose illness and compensation claim against Cape Asbestos were featured in the important documentary "Alice: A Fight For Life." Shown by Yorkshire Television in July 1982, the programme was an important catalyst for legal change and public awareness of the plight of the victims of asbestos.
If you need advice about an asbestos related illness, contact us now for
information about making a claim for compensation.
Further information:
Kevin Johnson, Partner
John Pickering and Partners LLP
19 Castle Street
Liverpool
L2 4SX
Telephone: 0151 227 1214
E-mail: kj@johnpickering.co.uk
Website: www.johnpickering.co.uk
FREEPHONE: 0800 854201
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