A dispute has arisen over which law firm should represent the claimants in the landmark Mariana Dam litigation involving current and former partners of Pogust Goodhead (PG).
The tussle came to light on 31 August when a client committee representing many of the claimants in the UK High Court claim against BHP over the collapse of the Fundão Dam in Brazil said it had ended PG’s retainer in favour of another firm, Bailey Glasser International (BGI), where key members of the PG team that advised on the claim in its earlier stages are now based.
The committee, which claims to represent the “vast majority” of claimants, said BGI would work with Hausfeld in London to manage the litigation, while retaining the senior counsel team involved in the case.
However, PG subsequently issued a strongly worded statement arguing that the committee does not have the authority to make the switch.
While acknowledging PG’s work in bringing the claim against BHP to the High Court and securing a liability judgment last November, the client committee said following discussions with PG about the case’s future conduct, the time was right to appoint new representatives, a position PG emphatically rejects.
A spokesperson for the committee said: “On behalf of the many individuals, communities, faith-based institutions and businesses affected by the Fundão Dam disaster, the client committee's priority is securing a fair outcome for our clients. Almost eleven years after the Fundão Dam collapse, the committee remains steadfast in its pursuit of justice and full redress for the victims of the Mariana tragedy.”
The committee said handover arrangements were in progress and that it did not expect the change to have any significant effect on the timetable. Humphries Kerstetter partners Toby Starr and Matthew Scully were advising the committee on the transition, it added.
BGI followed with an announcement on 1 September, claiming that it had taken over the litigation for more than 420,000 Brazilian claimants, meaning that senior members of the former Mariana legal team would return to the case, providing continuity, with the support of Hausfeld.
London-based BGI is the trading name of SRA-regulated law firm Edward McCourt & Company and operates under an agreement with US firm Bailey & Glasser, which has more than 130 lawyers across 13 states.
Three of its lawyers – partners Jeremy Evans and Faranak Ghajavand and senior associate Callum Walters – are described by the firm as having been key members of the PG team working on the BHP group litigation.
Ghajavand, head of commercial disputes, said: “Our priority is continuity for the claimants, with the case proceeding without disruption. It will be led by a team with many years’ experience on the case and a deep familiarity with the issues.
“We are grateful to the client committee for the trust and confidence it has placed in us, and we will be singularly focused on securing fair compensation for the claimants as efficiently as possible.”
Anthony Maton, senior partner at Hausfeld, said his firm was “honoured” to act alongside BGI in the case, adding: “Our sole focus in the second stage of the litigation, following the very clear first liability judgment, is to help secure the very best deal for the victims.”
PG, however, strongly challenged the committee’s authority to terminate the retainer. A PG spokesperson said: “The client committee has no authority to terminate [our] representation on behalf of the wider group of claimants in the proceedings arising from the Fundão Dam collapse. [We] continue to represent hundreds of thousands of Brazilians affected by the worst environmental disaster in the country’s history, and the litigation continues as normal.”
The litigation arises from the November 2015 collapse of the Fundão Dam in Mariana, Brazil. Following a trial between October 2024 and March 2025, the High Court found substantially for the claimants on liability in November. The Court of Appeal refused BHP permission to appeal in May 2026.
Stage two will address causation, loss and compensation. Evidence is due to be heard from April to December 2027, with closing submissions scheduled for March 2028.
PG pointed out that it had secured further funding to run the case and remained committed to maintaining the April 2027 trial date.
In June it announced a partnership with Quinn Emanuel and a facility of up to $150m from existing backer Gramercy for the litigation, having also refreshed its leadership after previous senior team exits.
It warned that the claimants’ after-the-event insurance had been arranged through the firm on the basis that it acted for them, arguing that transferring the case to another firm could threaten that costs protection.
The spokesperson said the committee risked “placing claimants' costs protection in jeopardy and exposing them to significant financial liabilities”, adding: “Pogust Goodhead remains the solicitor of record and continues to act in claimants' best interests, with the overriding objective of protecting both the litigation and the safeguards established for claimants.”
The defendant, BHP, was previously represented by Slaughter and May before being replaced by HSF Kramer in December 2025. Its lead partners are Alan Watts, Natasha Johnson, Neil Blake and Christopher Cox. The firm declined to comment.
The case continues, but absent any agreement, future court hearings to clarify representation seem likely. Quinn Emanuel declined to comment.
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