The risk of mesothelioma from occupational asbestos exposure was foreseeable by industry participants from at least the early 1960s, based on medical and scientific literature available at the time, even where the specific employer had not accessed that literature. An employer's non-delegable duty to provide a safe system of work is not discharged by engaging an independent contractor to perform the hazardous work. In Western Australian fatal accident claims, the appropriate discount rate for contingencies is 10 per cent, following Kschammer v R W Piper & Sons Pty Ltd [2003] WASCA 298.
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