Asbestos Compensation for Teacher’s Family After Mesothelioma Death
14/10/2009
An out of court settlement has been reached with local authorities after the husband of a teacher pursued an asbestos compensation claim following the death of his wife who contracted mesothelioma after teaching in local schools.
Joan Henry died in June 2007 aged 57, after fighting the fatal lung disease for nearly two and half years. Joan was a teacher for twenty-one years and it is believed that she contracted the fatal disease from asbestos in the ceilings of local schools in Poplar and Romford.
Joan contacted specialist asbestos lawyers at Irwin Mitchell after her doctor diagnosed mesothelioma and advised that she looked further into how she had contracted the disease. The specialist asbestos lawyers were able to obtain evidence from former teachers and the local education authorities to confirm the presence of asbestos in both of the schools she taught at.
Unfortunately Mrs. Henry’s asbestos claim was strongly contested and was still ongoing at the time of her death in 2007. Her husband and two daughters, Maria and Laura, carried on fighting the case after her death.
After Joan’s death, a post mortem was carried out to confirm the cause of death as diffuse malignant mesothelioma of the pleura, an industrial disease. The London Borough of Havering and the London Pension Funds Authority, Joan’s former employers, chose to carry out extensive testing at the site’s Joan taught at in order to try and prove that she had not been exposed to anything other than “background” levels of asbestos.
However, the tests carried out did not disprove that Joan had contracted the disease whilst teaching at the local schools. The case eventually concluded in an out of court settlement, just days before a High Court hearing in London, with full compensation given.
Mr. Henry said “My wife died for no other reason than breathing the air in her workplace. I hope that her death can help raise awareness of how important it is for education authorities to take all necessary steps in schools so that no one else contracts this devastating and painful disease.”
Mesothelioma is almost always caused by asbestos exposure and is a rare type of cancer that develops in the tissues covering the lungs or abdomen. There is no known level of exposure that is not harmful and of which there is no risk of developing the deadly disease.
Caroline Pinfold, representing the Henry family, of asbestos specialists Irwin Mitchell, said “We are seeing more cases like this where exposure to even low levels of asbestos in the workplace are accepted as a cause of mesothelioma.”
“Joan Henry’s avoidable death highlights the importance of identifying whether school buildings contain asbestos and the necessity of keeping it properly maintained if is not going to be removed” Mrs. Pinfold said.
Stephen Henry also stated "I am grateful to Caroline and Irwin Mitchell for supporting our family in this terrible ordeal. Without their commitment this result would never have been achieved and this would have been a double blow for us. We had approached other solicitors who would not take the case on."
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