Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom

Related legal acts

Key definition

Asbestos definition

What does Asbestos mean? In legal practice, asbestos refers to a group of naturally occurring fibrous silicate minerals present in many pre‑2000 buildings and industrial installations; when disturbed, they release respirable fibres that can cause serious illness, including mesothelioma, asbestosis, lung cancer and pleural thickening. The term is used across health and safety, construction, property and personal injury. It is defined in legislation: in Great Britain by the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012, in Northern Ireland by the Control of Asbestos Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2012, and in Ireland by the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Exposure to Asbestos) Regulations 2006–2010. Key legal features include...

Asbestos statutory duties in workplace exposure claims: regulatory timeline 1931–2012, civil liability pre-2013, duties to non-employees—Great Britain

Published by a LexisNexis PI & Clinical Negligence expert

Practice notes

This Practice Note surveys the statutory responsibilities placed on defendants in Asbestos litigation, highlighting the shifting regulatory regime, first set in 1931 and progressively expanded to control worker exposure. It further examines how asbestos’s prolonged latency period affects the operation and timing of these duties, and summarises the developing body of case law in this field. For fuller guidance on the common law Duty of care for asbestos claims, see Practice Note: Asbestos—the common law duty of care.

Breach of duty—statutory obligations

Note: this Practice Note cites statutory instruments that have since been revoked.

Section 69 of the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 commenced on 1 October 2013 and, via an amendment to section 47 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, removed the prospect of Civil liability arising from breach of Workplace regulations for accidents or exposure occurring on or after 1 October 2013.

This change undoes more than a century of health and safety law, but operates prospectively only, not retrospectively. Accordingly, where exposure to asbestos pre-dates 1 October 2013, a claimant may still rely upon breach of statutory duty...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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