A court in Madrid has ordered Uralita, a Spanish construction materials firm, to pay just under 4 million Euros to local residents who became ill following exposure to asbestos.

This landmark decision is the first of its kind in Spain. Compensation has been awarded to workers but never to members of the public who were exposed to asbestos as a result of living close to industrial sites.

The factory in Barcelona produced cement and compensation has now been awarded to 45 local residents.

This case is extremely similar to June Hancock’s legal battle here in the UK against Turner & Newall. June had lived close to the JW Roberts factory in Armley and contracted mesothelioma as a result of exposure to asbestos used at the factory.

I represented June in her case and her commitment to taking on a huge multinational company remains an inspiration to me. I’m pleased to see those who have suffered in similar circumstances in Spain have been awarded compensation.

A research team from the University of Hawaii may have identified how asbestos exposure causes mesothelioma.

Dr Haining Yang and Michele Carbone led the team that included researchers from around the world.

The team found that when asbestos fibres kill cells they start a process called “programmed cell necrosis”. This causes the cell to release a protein, HMGB1. The protein leads to changes in a cell’s genetic structure that cause it to mutate into a malignant cancer cell.

The researchers found people exposed to asbestos have higher levels of the protein in their serum, which may allow earlier identification and treatment of the disease.

The team is now planning to start clinical trials in a remote region in Cappadocia, Turkey, where more than half of the population dies from mesothelioma.

These findings open up a range of research possibilities that could help to find new treatments for mesothelioma. We hope that the clinical trials in Turkey produce positive results that can then be applied elsewhere to help those suffering from this dreadful disease.

On 1 July 2010 my colleagues Sarah Wolf, Nicky Howe, Claire Carver and I attended a demonstration outside the Canadian Embassy at Trafalgar Square in London. We joined many others to protest on Canada's 143rd birthday against Canada continuing to export asbestos. It is appalling that in this day and age Canada is doing this, fully aware that asbestos kills.

On the 1st July there will be a protest against Canada’s continued export of asbestos.

While most Western countries have banned the use of asbestos, Canada continues to export the material to the developing world to countries such as Bangladesh.

The local government in Quebec is preparing a loan guarantee to the asbestos industry and also to allow the opening of a new mine. It is thought that the new mine would export 200,000 tonnes of asbestos for the next 25 years.

The protest will take place outside Canada House in London and is timed to coincide with Canada Day. We would hope that the protest will prompt Canadian officials to re-think their policy on asbestos exports.

The 5th annual Action Mesothelioma Day takes place on Friday 2nd July. As in previous years, events will take place around the country to raise awareness of mesothelioma and pay respects to those who have lost their lives.

A number of lawyers from our various offices will be attending Action Mesothelioma Day events. We’ll be posting our comments once we have attended, but in the meantime here is a rundown of some of the events happening on July 2nd.

Irwin Mitchell is sponsoring a charity music event in Birmingham to raise money for the June Hancock Mesothelioma Research Fund – find out more here.