HL Deb 19 November 1998 vol 594 c175WA
Lord Ironside

asked Her Majesty's Government:

In respect of the Legal Aid Board's multi-party action in which 41 of the remaining plaintiffs are still seeking compensation for injuries caused by radiotherapy treatment for breast cancer, whether the experts' meetings fixed for early November to consider some or all of these cases have taken place; and what the result has been. [HL3906]

The Lord Chancellor (Lord Irvine of Lairg)

No experts' meeting was fixed for early November. The position remains that a date has yet to be arranged. However a directions hearing did take place on 29 October 1998. At that hearing the judge ruled that:

  1. (a) all expert reports should be lodged in court by 15 December 1998;
  2. (b) the stay on proceedings be lifted on 31 December 1998;
  3. (c) if cases cannot be settled then the Statements of Claim should be served by 15 February, 1999;
  4. (d) defences to those claims should be served by 30 March 1999; and
  5. (e) a further administrative hearing will be held before the end of March 1999.