Few people have a resume that rivals Melbourne litigator Peter Gordon.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised this article includes the name and image of an Indigenous person who has died.

One of the country's most prolific lawyers, his firm Gordon Legal has just finalised what could be the biggest class-action settlement in Australian history — the robodebt scandal .

But a case he picked up 40 years ago in the rugged bushland of Western Australia stands out above the rest.

"I look back on this as being a defining moment for occupational health and safety standards in Australia," Mr Gordon said.

"Because it truly was Dickensian in the worst sense of the word."

Blue asbestos mined between the late 1930s and mid-1960s in the remote Pilbara town of Wittenoom, 1,400

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