The US hedge fund Gramercy bankrolling a £36bn lawsuit against miner BHP over a dam collapse in Brazil that killed 19 people warned UK lawyer Tom Goodhead to settle the claim weeks before backing his removal as head of his firm.

Robert Koenigsberger, Gramercy's managing partner, pushed Goodhead, then chief executive of litigation boutique Pogust Goodhead, to settle after BHP and fellow miner Vale offered roughly $1.4bn. Goodhead believed the offer was too low for more than 420,000 Brazilian claimants. Koenigsberger told Goodhead he would not "play litigation roulette" and warned his firm would end up with nothing.

Two months after the June 2025 conversation, Goodhead was ousted as CEO in a move supported by Gramercy. A body representing claimants warned Pogust Goodhead it would be fired if concerns were not addressed, claiming the firm had been under Gramercy's control since Goodhead's removal.

Goodhead told the FT he was pressured to accept an undervalued settlement. Gramercy said he was "removed for cause" over financial allegations, which Goodhead disputes. The client committee has instructed Bailey Glasser International and Hausfeld to manage the case, with financing from North Wall Capital.