The government agreed this week to delay the implementation of
reforms to no win, no fee cases relating to a mesothelioma victim
seeking damages. This welcome, albeit minor concession, was in
response to pressure from the Society and other campaigners. The
concession requires the government to publish a review into the
impact of the reforms on the ability of mesothelioma victims to
obtain damages before the clauses can apply to such cases.
The government's decision on Tuesday evening followed further
pressure from the House of Lords and a number of other coalition
MPs. Peers had voted twice, at the Legal Aid, Sentencing and
Punishment of Offenders bill's report stage in February and again
on Monday, to insist that the no win, no fee reforms proposed in
part 2 of the bill do not apply in relation to mesothelioma cases.
A number of parliamentarians argued that mesothelioma victims
(whose disease arises from exposure to asbestos) could not possibly
bring 'frivolous or fraudulent' claims and did not therefore
deserve to potentially lose up to 25 per cent of their damages to
fund their lawyer's success fee.
Ministers had argued that victims would be in a position to
'shop around' for legal advice, choosing the lawyer with the lowest
success fee. However, via a number of speeches in both Houses,
parliamentarians, among them Lord Alton of Liverpool, argued that
'mesothelioma victims, who often have just months to live, should
not be expected to devote their energies to finding the lawyer with
the best deal'. On Tuesday evening, ministers finally conceded and
offered to delay implementation .
The Society will now work closely with ministers in both the
Ministry of Justice and the Department of Work and Pensions, who
will be undertaking the review, to ensure that the effect of the
reforms on access to justice is fully considered.
The concession comes during the bill's final stage - known as
'parliamentary ping pong' - as both the House of Lords and House of
Commons trade amendments until a definitive position is reached.
With peers likely to accept the Commons concessions later today,
the bill will now likely receive Royal Assent in the coming weeks
to become the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act
2012.
The Society will continue to work closely with ministers and
parliamentarians to ensure that the concessions obtained from the
government through the bill's parliamentary passage are now
accurately reflected in regulations, to be published over the
coming year. The bill's provisions are scheduled to come into
effect in April 2013.