For years the Canadain asbestos mining companies have refused to pay fair compensation to US citizens whom they have poisoned for decades. They hide behind the laws of Quebec and tell US mesothleioma victims come chase us in Canada if you want just compensation. This is despite the fact that these Canadian mining companies pumped millions of tons of asbestos into the United States responsible for the death of tens of thousands of US citizens. The proof is quite clear that these companies knew about the dangers of asbestos going back to the 1930s and were actively involved in a cover up to prevent workers from learning about the true dangers assocated with these products. The story below is but another example of how money in Canada has surpassed the concern for people.

LONDON – A medical journal is criticizing Canada for exporting asbestos to poor countries, joining others who have condemned the practice as hypocritical.

A report in the journal Lancet on Thursday notes that Canada virtually bans the use of asbestos. But, unlike other rich nations, it remains a major exporter of chrysotile, or white asbestos.

The Canadian Minister of Natural Resources office said its practice has a “sound scientific basis.”

Asbestos is a natural mineral which can be processed for use in rooftops, piping, or building materials. Inhaling its fibers scars the lungs and can lead to respiratory diseases, including cancers.

The World Health Organization says all types of asbestos cause cancer and more than 50 countries have banned it. About 100,000 people die every year from asbestos-related diseases and 125 million people remain exposed to the deadly substance worldwide.

Canada is the world’s fourth biggest exporter of asbestos, after Russia, Kazakhstan and Brazil. Last year, Canada shipped 150,000 tons to countries including India, Indonesia and the Philippines, where few laws exist to protect people from asbestos.

In Canada, the government has spent millions of dollars removing asbestos from buildings across the country, including its Parliament.

Numerous Canadian organizations, including the Quebec Medical Association, Canadian Cancer Society and the Canadian Medical Association have labeled Canada’s asbestos exportation as deplorable, shameful and unethical. They describe it as Prime Minister “Stephen Harper’s killer legacy.”

“Canada should not be exporting asbestos to developing nations where there are few or no workplace regulations,” Richard Horton, editor of the Lancet, said in a statement.

He called for an end to “this immoral export of asbestos-related death and disease to some of the most vulnerable people in the world.”

The report was written by the Lancet’s Tony Kirby.

With asbestos deposits dwindling in Quebec, where Canada’s asbestos is mined, the industry appeared doomed. But an international consortium proposed converting a closed mine into a new operation that could produce about 260,000 ton of white asbestos a year. Quebec is considering providing a $57 million loan guarantee for the project, according to previous published statements by the provincial government.

The international consortium that wants to reopen the mine claims Canadian asbestos is only sold to manufacturers with responsible use practices in place. Developers said all the mined asbestos would be sent abroad, with about half of it going to India. The consortium also said they would use pictures to instruct people on the safe and responsible usage of asbestos.

The office of the Canadian Minister of Natural Resources said they believe the risks linked to asbestos can be managed.

“Canada’s policy of controlled use has a sound scientific basis and is a responsible approach,” said Paul Duchesne, a spokesman for the minister in an e-mailed statement.

“Through the enforcement of appropriate regulations to rigorously control exposure to (white asbestos), the health risks associated with processes and products can be reduced to acceptable levels,” Duchesne said.

The Canadian government says the risks from white asbestos can be managed in controlled conditions, like if the substance is covered by another material so the asbestos layer is not releasing dust.

Kathleen Ruff, a senior human rights adviser to the Rideau Institute, an independent research and advocacyorganization in Ottawa, said that exporting asbestos and refusing to alert poor countries to its dangers, Canada is intentionally doing harm.

In 2006, Canada led an effort to block a United Nations convention that would have made it mandatory to warn countries of hazardous substances like asbestos, she said.

“Canada has blood on its hands,” Ruff said. “What we are doing is unconscionable. The whole world should condemn us.”

Protesters plan to hit the street this week in Asia, London and Quebec, to demand a global ban on asbestos in any building materials.

Today a Miami jury handed Union Carbide a major loss in a mesothelioma asbestos case. Union Carbide is a supplier of asbestos that is incorporated into other products like Spackle or joint compound. In this case, the jury assessed Union Carbide with 46%of the verdict. The other defendants in the case settled before trial. Congratulations to our friend Juan Bauta of The Ferraro Law Firm who did such a great job representing the family.

Yesterday  an Illinois jury handed down a surprising verdict against two former asbestos product manufacturers. According to the attorneys involved in the case, the verdict was returned on the novel liability theory of corporate conspiracy. Typically this means that the factfinder determined that the defendants acted in concert with one another and caused the plaintiffs injury.  This is different than a typical mesothelioma product liability case where the verdict is based upon a failure to warn about a particular product manufactured or sold by the defendant.

In this case, the plaintiff,Jayne Menssen, is 65 years old, widowed, and has no children. She was exposed to asbestos from 1967-1969 when she worked as a secretary at the UNARCO plant in Bloomington, IL.  The jury returned the following verdict:

$3,500,000 compensatory
$4,370,000 punitives against Abex
$10,000,000 punitives against Honeywell

Congratulations  to my friends ,Lisa Corwin & Jim Wydler,  who represented the plaintiff  for this extraordinary result.

Today a  Baltimore jury returned a verdict of  $9,985,000  against ATTRANSCO on behalf of  LeRoy J. Conway, Jr. and his wife, Yolanda.    Leroy’s  father worked for ATTRANSCO beginning in the early 1960s through the 1970s as a merchant mariner in the engine rooms of ships with steam equipment and exposed his son to asbestos when he came home from work. Leroy’s claim was for his exposure in the 1970′s.  Leory was diagnosed with pleural mesothelioma when he was 44 years-old and underwent the removal of his lung shortly thereafter. Congratulations to my friends and co counsel Scott Frost, Demetrios Zacharapoulos, and George Tankard of Waters & Kraus on their well deserved victory.

For  more information on recent mesothelioma verdicts see http://www.mesotheliomalegalblog.com/mesothelioma-litigation/verdictsandsettlements.html.

In the courts rages a major debate as to whether the talc in various products actually contains asbestos. RT Vanderbilt says no. Here is the proof submitted by one plaintiff with mesothelioma who alleges that Vanderbilt talc caused mesothelioma.

http://www.mesotheliomalegalblog.com/index.cfm/2010/1/24/Mesothelioma-Plaintiff-Proves-that-RT-Vanderbilt-Knew-of-Asbestos-in-Talc