UK Woman Receives Asbestos Compensation -- MesoLink.org -- 06-07-06

The widow of a man who died from mesothelioma, the asbestos related cancer, has been awarded over ninety thousand pounds (GBP) as compensation for her late husband’s exposure to asbestos and his subsequent death. The 72-year-old widow is from Yorkshire in England, and after winning the case she criticized the company responsible for her husband’s exposure to the deadly carcinogenic.

Aileen Gardner lost her husband, Jack, to mesothelioma in 2001 when he was 73 years of age. The John Cotton Group paid the settlement out of court. It was alleged that Garden, who worked for the company for two years between 1958 and 1960, was exposed to asbestos fibers when he was asked to load and unload sacks that once contained asbestos.

A solicitor for the plaintiff stated: "I was particularly disheartened by the aggressive stance the company took in defending this case. Had it not been for its reluctance to accept it ever employed Mr. Gardner, or admit he had been exposed to asbestos during the course of his work, the case could have been resolved much earlier than it was.”

She added: "The John Cotton Group, via their solicitors, continually attempted to discourage Mrs. Gardner from pursuing her claim for compensation. It was only on the day before the trial was due to start that the company finally made a realistic proposal for settlement and compensation for Mrs. Gardner was agreed."