Narrowing path to justice for mesothelioma victims is unreasonable
Frances McCarthy, Managing Partner of Pattinson & Brewer and a past president of APIL voices her disappointment at the recent Government statement by Courts Minister Shailesh Vara.
“Victims groups may be pleased by the Government’s rejection of the insurance industry’s proposals to change the way compensation claims for terminal cancer patients are handled. But, in my view, it is a hollow victory when the Government still appear determined to narrow the paths to justice for mesothelioma victims”
“If the Government has its way, victims of this aggressive and terminal occupational disease will no longer have any protections from the reforms to the no win no fee system implemented through the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders (LASPO) Act, earlier this year.
It is totally unacceptable sufferers may have to make deductions from their damages to pay their costs. That’s if their case manages to reach court – some may never be brought to court at all!
We must fight to ensure this Government does not narrow down the path to justice, and much needed compensation, in the name of reducing costs. Negligent employers must be brought to account and insurance companies made to pay victims as swiftly as possible.
Families that are facing mesothelioma do not want to have the final months, with their loved ones, blighted by a fight with bureaucracy. They want the support they are rightly eligible for, paid without needless hurdles”
My partners and I will be writing to Mr Shailesh Vara to express our concerns.
Ends./
Pattinson & Brewer is a leading claimant law firm – founded in 1890 – with offices in London, Bristol and York. Our solicitors and their support teams fight for justice on behalf of individuals, never big organisations. Our key sectors are personal injury, medical negligence, industrial and employment.
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