LBMA lawsuit Oct 7 could challenge gold certification process

The London Bullion Market Association (LBMA) will defend itself in London's High Court from October 7 against a claim that it owed a duty of care to two Tanzanian artisanal miners allegedly killed at the North Mara gold mine in 2019.

The case marks a legal challenge to a 276-year-old system that determines which gold bars can be traded in London, the world's largest over-the-counter bullion market, testing whether it can be held responsible for alleged abuses linked to gold mining.

"A finding that the LBMA owes a duty of care of the alleged nature and scope would, without exaggeration, be an existential issue for the LBMA," the association, which manages the Good Delivery List of accredited gold refiners, said in its defence documents.

SUCCESSFUL CASE COULD SPARK FURTHER CLAIMS
In the case, law firm Leigh Day, representing relatives of the two artisanal miners, claims the LBMA was negligent in re-certifying a Good Delivery refinery that processed North Mara's gold in 2019 "in circumstances where such certification cloaked ongoing serious human rights abuses" at the mine.
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