By Bianca Castro2026-06-24T11:26:00+01:00
Class action firm Pogust Goodhead has lined up a $150 million boost to its funding warchest and announced a 'strategic partnership' with New York-based litigation heavyweight Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan as it limbers up for the next phase of its claim against mining giant BHP over a 2015 Brazilian dam collapse.
US hedge fund Gramercy Funds Management will be providing the new facility, with an initial tranche of $85m (£64.6m), the firm said today. Gramercy is understood to have already invested £450m in the claim, which has been valued at £36bn.
The first-stage trial in one of the largest group actions in English legal history concluded in March last year. In November, a 222-page judgment by Mrs Justice O’Farrell found the collapse of the Fundão Dam, operated by Samarco, a joint venture between BHP and Brazilian company Vale, had been ‘foreseeable’. It found BHP was ‘strictly liable’.
BHP sought permission to appeal the decision but was refused by the Court of Appeal. A second phase of the trial, dealing with quantum, is listed to begin in October.
Pogust Goodhead says funding and deal with Quinn Emanuel will give it 'resources, expertise and resolve'
Under the strategic partnership Pogust will work alongside Quinn Emanuel, which styles itself the 'world's most-feared law firm' and last year reported profit per equity partner figure of $9.5m. The team will be led by Quinn partner in London Justin Michaelson, a specialist in complex cross-border disputes.
Michaelson said: ‘This is one of the most significant group actions ever brought before the English courts. PG has achieved a landmark result in establishing liability, and we are proud to join them at this pivotal stage. Together, our focus is clear: to secure the strongest possible outcome for the claimants and help bring this long-running litigation to a successful conclusion.’
Howard Morris, chair of Pogust Goodhead, said: ‘For more than a decade, our clients have fought for accountability. With liability now established and BHP’s attempts to challenge that finding rejected, the focus turns to securing the compensation they deserve and bringing this case to a long-awaited resolution.
‘The support of Gramercy and our partnership with Quinn Emanuel ensure we have the resources, expertise and resolve to deliver the outcome our clients have waited for more than a decade to achieve.’
BHP, speaking last month on the quantum phase of the trial, said: ‘Since 2015, we have supported Samarco in ensuring full and fair reparation, and that is why we are willing to defend the UK case robustly and for as long as it takes.
‘Following the Stage 2 trial, further trials to assess damages are not expected to conclude until 2030 and beyond.
‘BHP remains confident that the work in place since 2015 and the US$32 billion Brazil agreement provide the quickest and most efficient solution to compensate those impacted by the Samarco dam failure.’
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