Case study 3

McIntyre v Harland & Wolff Plc and Husbands Ltd Court of Appeal 28/3/06

M (aged 58) worked in Libya and was legally entitled to a future payment from his employers comprising a lump sum and regular payouts from a pension fund which both employer and employee had both paid into. The payment would be made if M left the company or died whilst working for them.

M expected to retire and receive his payment at the age of 63. He was diagnosed with mesothelioma, caused by exposure to asbestos for which his employers were liable, in May 2002 and resolved not to return to Libya. On 5 September 2002 his employer terminated M's employment because he had been absent for more than 120 days, a move which triggered the lump sum payment. M died on 10 October 2002. The payment was passed to his widow, being his sole dependant.

M's widow decided to pursue a claim against her husband's employers through our expert No Win No Fee lawyers. With our help she took her late husband's employers to court, claiming she was dependent on his wages and future pension. Her claim for dependency upon the lump sum payment was found to be valid.

M's widow said she would have been dependent upon a proportion of the lump sum payment when her husband received it at age 63, as a form of pension. She presented a claim for the value of that dependency, discounted for taxation and possible future events. Our expert No Win No Fee lawyers told the court on her behalf that no allowance should be made for the receipt of the lump sum she had already received because it accrued as a result of her husband's death and was to be disregarded.

Her husband's employers said that as the deceased had become entitled to the lump sum payment before his death; his widow could not claim she had expected to be dependent on it in future. They added that as the claimant had inherited the very thing which was said to give rise to the dependency, she could not demonstrate any loss. They claimed she was not therefore entitled to a pay out according to the law.

Thanks to MyClaim's expert No Win No Fee lawyers, the trial judge found in favour of M's widow. His former employees appealed but lost the case

The decision demonstrates that each case has carefully to be considered according to the facts involved. Where a benefit received through the estate of somebody who has died arises after a situation in which the defendant is legally in the wrong the court is likely to conclude that a loss has been demonstrated under the law and the fact that a sum has already been received should not be taken into account. Therefore a beneficiary of the estate of someone who has died who was dependent on them may well be entitled to recover certain losses twice.

MyClaim's No Win No Fee lawyers can help you pursue a variety of compensation claims, such as work injury compensation claims or workplace accident claims. Our expert personal injury lawyers will take you through all stages of your compensation claim.