Andrew Young v. The Advocate General for Scotland [2009] CSOH NUMBER102A

Proof:- The pursuer, a 60 year old man, worked in the employment of the Ministry of Defence at Rosyth Dockyard as a fitter from 1968 until 1976. He worked on vessels undergoing refit and repair and worked in the vicinity of laggers who were stripping and applying asbestos lagging. From 1976 until 1984, the pursuer worked for British Coal as a surface fitter when he worked on steam boilers and locomotives that were lagged with asbestos which he removed and he used asbestos based packing material for valves. The pursuer now suffers from a lung condition, interstitial lung disease, which is a disease of the parenchyma, the part of the lung responsible for the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide. It was contended on behalf of the pursuer at proof that he suffered from asbestosis as a result of exposure to asbestos during the periods of employment with the Ministry of Defence and British Coal. On behalf of the defender it was submitted that the pursuer suffered not from asbestosis but from an idiopathic lung condition unrelated to asbestos exposure, namely cryptogenic fibrolising alveolitis, also known and referred to as idiopathic pulmonary disease and if that was indeed the case and the pursuer suffers from cryptogenic fibrolising alveolitis then the defender's would not be liable for his condition. At proof each party lead evidence from an expert witness and the court here considered, in light of that expert evidence, which condition it was that the pursuer suffered from and whether the defender was liable.