A British court has thrown out a case brought against Anglo American South Africa, a subdivision of the UK mining multinational, saying it did not have jurisdiction to hear the case. Over 2,000 miners filed suit against the company after contracting the lung disease silicosis, a disease with no known cure that causes shortness of breath, a persistent cough, and a high susceptibility to tuberculosis. Anglo American switched its headquarters from Johannesburg to London in 1999, but maintains around $15 billion worth of assets in its South African unit. The UK judge granted permission to appeal, and a lawyer for the miners said many planned to file a separate suit in South Africa. "Today's ruling was a pyrrhic victory for Anglo American, which as the largest gold mining company over the past 50 years still has to face compelling claims by thousands of miners affected by dust-related lung diseases," said Richard Meeran of Leigh Day, which is representing the miners. "In any event since the judge gave permission to appeal, the UK jurisdiction issue remains live." For the full story, see http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/07/24/us-safrica-silicosis-idUKBRE96N13820130724.