Company X. v. Mr. D. and the Maine et Loire health insurance fund Reference : 21/00618 Complaint date : August 31, 2018 Status : Final judgment Place of jurisdiction : France, Angers, Maine et Loire Plaintiffs types : Economic stakeholders Plaintiffs names : Anonyme Defendants : Other, Individual Lawyers for Health and Environmental Justice : Maître Coaguila (ACR Avocats) Case nature : Social court Type(s), Product(s), Active substance(s) : Other Requests : Overturn the judgment of the court of first instance, which recognizes the plaintiff company as responsible for the pathology developed by Mr. D. on the grounds of inexcusable fault, orders company X to reimburse the costs incurred by the primary health insurance fund, and sets Mr. D.'s pension at the maximum rate and grants Mr. D. a provision of 20,000 euros. Name of the Court : Court of Appeal, Social Security Division of Angers, Maine et Loire, France Jurisdiction level : Appeal Decision date : November 16, 2023 Decision nature : Positive Decision content : The company is liable for inexcusable fault in the occurrence of Mr. D's follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Legal basis : No description Court Ruling : Link to the ruling Summary : On November 16, 2023, the Angers Court of Appeal confirmed that the follicular non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (FNHL) developed by Mr. D., an employee exposed to pesticides, was attributable to the inexcusable fault of his employer. Mr. D was employed by the plaintiff company X for several years, and came into direct contact with kerosene and benzene, two substances used in the composition of phytosanitary products and recognized as highly toxic. He obtained recognition of his illness as being of occupational origin by the Maine-et-Loire Social Security Tribunal (TASS) on June 28, 2017. On August 31, 2018, Mr. D. again appealed to the TASS, seeking recognition of his employer's inexcusable fault in the occurrence of his pathology. On October 11, 2021, the Tribunal recognized that the pathology developed by Mr. D. was attributable to his employer, ordered company X to reimburse the costs incurred by the primary health insurance fund, set Mr. D.'s pension at the maximum rate and awarded Mr. D. a provision of 20,000 euros. Company X appealed against this decision on November 5, 2021, arguing that Mr. D.'s illness was not attributable to it, since the occupational nature of the disease had not been demonstrated. The Court of Angers dismissed the company's claim. It noted that although Mr. D.'s illness was not listed in any table of occupational diseases, it was recognized that exposure to benzene can generate cancerous pathologies. The Court also noted that it has been established that exposure to pesticides can lead to "non-Hodgkin's malignant lymphoma, including chronic lymphocytic leukemia and multiple myeloma", and that in order to establish a link between the development of a pathology and the exercise of a profession, it is necessary to "refer to the most recent medical and scientific data". In this case, the most recent data recognizes the existence of a direct link between the development of LFNH and the conditions under which a professional activity is exercised. Mr. D. worked for 5 years in unsafe conditions: medical reports show that he was directly exposed to high doses of kerosene and benzene, working without a mask in a poorly ventilated building, with his hands immersed in kerosene containers. Accordingly, the lower court's judgment is upheld, and the company is deemed to have been inexcusably at fault in the occurrence of Mr. D.'s illness. Scientific references : No scientifice reference for this case. Related links : No related link for this case.