The Court of Appeal has rejected mining giant BHP’s application to appeal the November High Court ruling which found it liable for the Mariana dam collapse.
Pogust Goodhead acted on behalf of the claimants and following the ruling, HSF Kramer took over for Slaughters as counsel for BHP.
Pogust Goodhead has secured another win in the Mariana dam case as The Court of Appeal rejected BHP’s application to appeal the High Court’s judgment that found the mining giant liable for the dam collapse, the worst environmental disaster in Brazil’s history.
In the judgment handed down today, Lord Justice Fraser wrote: “I do not accept that any of the grounds relating to BHP’s liability for the dam collapse are reasonably arguable.”
HSF Kramer acted for BHP, replacing Slaughters as counsel following the High Court loss in November.
Appeal denied
The Court of Appeal heard BHP’s application for permission to appeal the decision on 12 March after BHP was refused permission to appeal by the High Court in January.
The mining firm sought to challenge that BHP was strictly liable as a polluter, that it was aware of issues with the dam before it collapsed, and the finding that all claims were brought within the limitation period.
BHP claimed in its skeleton argument that “something has clearly gone wrong in the judicial process and the [main] Judgment needs to be fully scrutinised on appeal”.
Jonathan Wheeler, lead partner on the case at Pogust Goodhead, said the outcome was “an emphatic and unambiguous” rejection of BHP’s arguments.
He added: “BHP remains liable for the worst environmental disaster in Brazil’s history, and it will not be given another bite at the cherry."
Pogust hired Wheeler in November from Morrison Foerster in London and his former colleague Gemma Anderson from Quinn Emanuel in February to strengthen its team on the high-profile case.
No appeal prospects
This judgment likely marks the end of the appeal process, any further applications requiring a high threshold with “exceptional circumstances".
Wheeler said: “Our clients have waited more than a decade for justice while BHP pursued every procedural avenue to avoid accountability; those avenues are now closed.”
Damages phase ahead
The litigation, brought on behalf of hundreds of thousands of Brazilian claimants, will now move to Stage 2 proceedings covering causation, loss and damages.
Trial evidence is due to be heard between April and December 2027, with closing submissions scheduled for March 2028.
For more on the £36 billion class action - the largest in British history - listen to our podcast episode with Pogust Goodhead’s former managing partner, Tom Goodhead.
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