Employers contributing asbestos fibres were held liable, but not jointly and severally for the whole amount of damages since the Compensation Act 2006 did not apply.
The Fairchild principle as regards mesothelioma – that all employers negligently contributing to the risk can have some liability – has now been held by the Court of Appeal to extend to lung cancer caused by asbestos.
However, because the relevant provision of the Compensation Act 2006 does not apply to lung cancer, each defendant was only liable for its portion of the damages, which meant in this case that the claimant could recover only part of them. The case is Heneghan v Manchester Dry Docks, www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2016/86.html