Mariana victims win appeal and may sue BHP in UK

Published on 07/08/2022 09:09

(Credit: Antonio Cruz/ Agência Brasil)

The United Kingdom Justice Department is considering suing mining giant BHP Billiton in a British court for those affected by the Fundão dam failure in the Marianas. The decision was handed down on Friday (07/08) by the Court of Appeal (Civil Division) in London.

Prosecutors for the Brazilians have all the points they need to close and go to trial. There were fears that only the municipalities that were part of the action would have the right to sue the British and Australian capital firm, which jointly controls Samarco with Vale, the mining company that operated the broken dam in Brazil.

In 2018, British and Brazilian lawyers from the PGMPM office filed an international lawsuit against mining giant BHP Billiton demanding £5 billion (more than R$ 32 billion) in damages. November 5, 2015.

The Estado de Minas report exclusively revealed the process followed its progress since 2018, when production began in Mariana, and included two pre-admission tests in Manchester and 2022. London.

UK courts have accepted the belief of around 200,000 victims represented by Anglo-Brazilian law firm PGMBM, who have not yet been awarded compensation in Brazil for the 2015 tragedy.

After the dam broke, 19 people died, 500,000 were injured and 40 million cubic meters of iron ore reached the Atlantic Ocean in the Rio Dos river basin, between Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo.

Mariana, five municipalities, six religious institutions and 25 municipalities in Minas Gerais and Espírito Santo, including 530 institutions of different sizes, joined the action.

BHP Billiton can appeal for a Supreme Court review within 28 days, but an appeal at this level will normally be accepted if it concerns a matter considered to be of public importance.

In the first instance, a judge at Manchester Civil Court held that it was an abuse of jurisdiction to adjudicate BHP at the same time as litigation was ongoing in Brazil. PGMBM lawyers say there is insufficient justice in Brazil.

In the first judgment, the Court of Appeal affirmed the lower court’s decision. But a contingency of the civil law was given to the victims to avoid great injustices, and a fresh appeal was made because of it.

Throughout the process, BHP’s lawyers described the company’s efforts to redress victims through the Renova Foundation, pointing out that any Brazilian would have access to justice and that a case in the UK would duplicate proceedings already underway in Brazil.

On the other hand, advocates for the victims, the international law firm PGMPM, argued that more than 6 years after the breakup, there is no reparations process in Brazil that includes the victims and allows for full compensation. In their view, because BHP is a British company, its customers can sue in England.

Justice abroad

Victims’ Justice in the United Kingdom

November 5, 2015

» The Fundao dam, operated by mining company Samarco in the Marianas, ruptures and releases 40 million cubic meters of iron ore seams. An estimated 700,000 people were affected in the Rio Dos basin. Nineteen people died after the wreck, and the body of one of the victims has never been recovered.

September 21, 2018

» At risk of time-barring damages claims three years after the disaster, English law firm SPG Law has now announced that PGMBM, along with Vale, will file a lawsuit in the UK courts against Samarco’s parent company, BHP Billiton SPL. . At the time it was valued at £5 billion.

October 3, 2018

» The agreement signed between the Ministry of Public Affairs, Samarco and its controlling companies (except BHP, Vale) provided for the interruption of statutory statute of limitations.

November 2, 2018

» PGMBM office files compensation claims against BHP Billiton SPL at UK Justice Department, over 200,000 affected by dam failure

November 16, 2018

» The Renova Foundation is pressuring municipalities and affected populations to drop international action as a condition of receiving agreed compensation. Lawyers from the International Office react

March 13, 2020

» PGMBM submits to BHP a comprehensive set of documents arguing that the client’s intention to bring an action before a UK court is legitimate. Contains legal opinions and testimonies from victims and Brazilian lawyers who have worked in Brazil on behalf of victims of the Fundão dam failure.

From July 22 to 31, 2020

» Lawyers for the victims and BHP Billiton are taking the international case to the Civil Justice Center in Manchester, where Judge Sir Mark Turner will rule on whether UK courts can sue for damages.

November 9, 2020

» Judge Sir Mark Turner rules that victims’ compensation claims against Anglo-Australian firm BMP Billiton are invalid. The victims’ lawyers appealed

March 23, 2021

» Court of Appeal in London rejects appeal and dismisses case. The lawyers point out that the decision was taken without regard to the arguments presented. Judicial recovery of Renova and Samarco

May 04, 2021

» A judge at the Court of Appeal in London suspiciously judges himself and transfers the petition to the vice president of the company, who reopens the analysis.

July 27, 2021

» The Court of Appeal at the Crown Court in London reopens the international process, ruling that the victims’ appeal should be re-heard

October 14, 2021

» Lawyers for the victims add new evidence and update the situation of the victims for the hearing at the Court of Appeal in London

Between 4th and 8th April 2022

» Judges at the Court of Appeal heard arguments from victims of BHP and accepting the action in the UK.

July 8, 2022

» The Court of Appeal in London has ruled that it can hear all issues brought by victims in the UK case against BHP Billiton. The company can try to appeal.