Hugh James were instructed to represent Mr L who was diagnosed with mesothelioma following exposure to asbestos dust during his time working for Atlanta plastics in Cwmbran. Mr L was exposed to asbestos whilst checking and replacing the linings of heater bands within the machinery used in the plastics production process. Mr L set out that he was carrying out this process daily however this was denied by the defendants throughout the claim who alleged that it would have been done very rarely.
The defendants sought to rely on recently decided case law which suggested that extremely low doses of asbestos exposure cannot be deemed causative of mesothelioma legally. As there was no publicly available data concerning the use of asbestos within these types of machines, it meant that a significant amount of expert engineering evidence was required to examine the exact mechanism of asbestos exposure that Mr L suffered.
Mr L was keen to settle the claim during his lifetime in order to support his family, so Hugh James used the expert engineering evidence in conjunction with their own legal arguments to obtain settlement for him in a sum in excess £200,000 without the need of having a trial.