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 personal injury claims: common law duty, low-level foreseeability, date of knowledge, evidential burdens and disclosure—key case law in England and Wales

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Practice notes

This Practice Note reviews the common law Duty of care in Asbestos-related personal injury claims. It sets out the legal principles on duty and breach, highlights key authorities concerning low-level exposure, and considers whether the risk of injury was reasonably foreseeable. It also clarifies disclosure obligations. Frequently, the most challenging issues are demonstrating that a claimant was exposed to asbestos and by whom.

The duty of care

In most instances, establishing a duty of care will not be problematic. Employers plainly owe a common law duty of care to their employees. That duty includes an obligation not to negligently expose employees to the risk of developing an asbestos-related disease. Since 1931, an ever-increasing range of statutory duties has been imposed on employers in relation to the risks created by asbestos exposure. These are addressed in Asbestos—statutory duty of care. Although not quite as straightforward, few obstacles should arise in establishing that a duty of care is owed to self-employed workers and sub-contractors who are invited onto a site or into a factory by the owner/occupier...

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Web page updated on 21/05/2026

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