Supreme Court confirms that families of deceased mesothelioma sufferers can claim damages even after prior settlement of earlier asbestos-injury claims (Veale and others v Scottish Power UK Plc)
The Supreme Court has unanimously held that the surviving relatives of the late Robert Crozier may recover damages under the Damages (Scotland) Act 2011 (D(S)A 2011), despite a full and final settlement he reached in 2014 with Scottish Power UK Plc after he developed pleural plaques and asbestosis, before developing mesothelioma. Rejecting the employer’s argument that the prior discharge barred further claims, the Supreme Court ruled that although the 2014 settlement did amount to a discharge of the liability to pay damages, section 5(1)(b) of the D(S)A 2011 creates a specific mesothelioma exception, meaning the relatives’ action remained competent despite the earlier settlement. The judgment clarifies that a settlement of an earlier asbestos-injury claim does not preclude bereaved relatives from claiming for distress, grief and loss of society when the employee later dies of mesothelioma.