The founder of the law firm characterizes the investment as “a capitalist solution to the negative externalities of capitalism.” Pogust Goodhead, a class action law firm, has secured a substantial £450 million in debt financing from a US investor to take on corporations facing allegations of wrongdoing.
This law firm, specializing in cases involving environmental negligence or misconduct by companies, has officially announced the successful acquisition of this investment from Gramercy, an emerging markets investment management company.
According to Pogust Goodhead, this corporate finance agreement represents the largest investment ever made in a law firm globally and is a response to the growing demand from consumers and citizens for collective legal action against corporations.
Tom Goodhead, the global managing partner and CEO of Pogust Goodhead, has stated that this debt financing will empower the firm to “take on some of the largest companies in the world on behalf of millions of people.”
He further explained, “This landmark deal shows that some of the most sophisticated institutional investors in the world have analyzed our cases and believe that they will be successful. This investment will not only ensure we resolve our existing cases successfully, but we now have the financial firepower to hold any company anywhere in the world accountable for corporate wrongdoing.”
Goodhead has described Gramercy’s investment as “a capitalist solution to the negative externalities of capitalism.”
He emphasized, “Pogust Goodhead is not on an ideological mission to seek to destroy shareholder value in the companies we litigate against. Instead, we are seeking to hold companies accountable when they commit corporate misconduct in a way which will actually benefit shareholders long term and initiate behavioral change.”
The firm is currently representing victims of the Mariana dam collapse in a significant class action lawsuit against mining giants BHP and Vale in Brazil. Additionally, they are representing millions of individuals entangled in the Dieselgate emissions scandal in the UK.
Pogust Goodhead claims to represent more than three million clients in total and has raised a total of £650 million since its establishment in 2018.
Harris Pogust, chairman of Pogust Goodhead, expressed great excitement about Gramercy’s investment and partnership as they aim to pursue global justice for their current clients and the millions yet to come. He emphasized that corporations are now aware that it is in their financial interest, as well as that of their shareholders, to settle or face a firm with both the financial resources and litigation skills to secure the justice their clients rightly deserve.
This announcement coincides with a separate report from RepRisk, a data science company, which found that one in three public companies associated with ‘greenwashing,’ the practice of making exaggerated or deceptive claims about their environmental responsibility, were also involved in “social washing.” Social washing involves overstating or making misleading claims about a company’s social responsibility efforts.
The research, published recently, revealed that 31 percent of publicly listed companies linked to instances of exaggerated or deceptive green claims were also associated with social washing. It further noted a 70 percent increase in climate-related greenwashing incidents within the banking and financial sectors over the past year.
Dr. Philipp Aeby, CEO and co-founder of RepRisk, observed, “The expectation of competitive advantage derived from an image of sustainability has opened the door to green and social washing.” He highlighted the lack of accountability in the rapidly evolving landscape of corporate sustainability, which has allowed these practices to persist. However, he pointed out that in recent years, symbolic sustainability efforts have backfired for many as the media, the public, and regulators criticize unfounded claims.
