ABSTRACT
The relationship between England and asbestos compensation is a long and difficult one. One of the countries that made use of asbestos in the late nineteenth century, England is the first country in which asbestos toxicity was recorded. After decades of experience with the legal implication of asbestos toxicity, England now has rather stable although partially contested mechanisms of asbestos compensation which involve a mix of payments from the Industrial Injuries Disability Benefit (IIDB), ad hoc schemes, and litigation. The unique blend of administrative compensation and litigation makes England an interesting case study of asbestos compensation compared with Continental Europe and the United States. While an important component of the safety net of asbestos victims, analyzing these benefits does not add much to understanding how asbestos compensation developed in England. As personal injury litigation became a routinized part of asbestos compensation, unions' role in mobilizing claims shrank and was supplemented by victims' support groups and a more active plaintiff bar.
