Law firm, Field Fisher Waterhouse LLP has won a £400,000 damages
payout in the High Court for a carpenter who is battling for
survival against asbestos-related
cancer. The agreed award to father-of-two Amarjeet Singh
Dahele, aged 52, of East London, is believed to be one of the
highest ever made in such a case.
Whilst working on three tower blocks in Stratford, East London
between 1975 and 1977, Mr Dahele was regularly exposed to asbestos dust and fibres. He was required to saw
and drill asbestos sheets and was showered with asbestos-laden dust
and debris as scaffolding was removed from above him.
Mr Dahele was diagnosed with Mesothelioma - a cancer of the lining of the
lungs, only caused by exposure to asbestos. It is amongst the most
difficult cancers to treat and the disease is notorious for its
slowness to develop and for the agony suffered by its victims.
Mr Dahele had received Pemetrexed (Alimta) and Cisplatin
chemotherapy at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London but had been told
by his treating consultant Dr Jeremy Steele, director of Bart's
Mesothelioma Research, that although a further course would be
beneficial it would not be available on the NHS. As a
result, we included the cost of obtaining it via the private
sector in the court action.
Acting for Mr Dahele, law firm, Field Fisher Waterhouse sued the
company for which he worked as a carpenter at the time - Thomas
Bates and Son Ltd, of The Old Brick Works, Romford. The company
admitted liability after cross-examining him at his home. At court
the company conceded Mr Dahele's claim for nursing care and
equipment in the sum of £18,593.26, the cost of private
chemotherapy treatment in the sum of £20,000 and in respect of the
lost years claim a reduction of 25% rather than the usual 50%.