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Burford Capital Expands European Footprint

May 11, 2023

Burford Capital Expands European Footprint

Burford Capital, the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law, today announces that it has expanded its European footprint while also continuing to add leading legal talent to its global operation. Expanded client demand for offerings such as corporate monetization and law firm portfolio financing, combined with a greater desire and need for legal finance in Europe due to legislative changes related to collective redress, have resulted in Burford’s continued growth. In Europe, Burford now has an on-the-ground presence in London, Frankfurt, Zug, Paris, Rome and Stockholm.

Changes to Burford’s European operation include:

  • Burford veterans Michael Redman and Daniel Hall now serve as co-heads of EMEA: Mr. Redman leads Burford’s London office, and as previously announced, Mr. Hall leads Burford’s new office in Dubai.
  • Philipp Leibfried has taken on the role of Head of Europe and will continue to implement Burford’s European growth strategy, actively engaging with law firms and companies across continental Europe.
  • Swiss-based Dr. Jörn Eschment has been promoted to Director and will continue to lead Burford’s business in the DACH region of Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
  • Dr. Luca Weskott has joined Burford as a Vice President based in Frankfurt, Germany, and will originate and manage investments in the DACH region. He joins Burford from leading German law firm Hengeler Mueller’s Dispute Resolution practice.

Christopher Bogart, CEO of Burford Capital, said: “As the global industry leader, Burford is constantly evolving to meet our clients’ needs. We continue to add the best and brightest talent company-wide, because that’s the basis not only for growth but for developing strong and lasting client relationships. And I’m especially pleased that as we hire new global talent, we’re also promoting our existing talent into leadership positions.”

Philipp Leibfried, Burford Capital’s Head of Europe, said: “While Burford has always had a significant presence in both the UK and in Europe, with 47 staff now in London, we are also dedicating additional resources to Europe to match growing demand on the continent. From the UK to the DACH region, France, Italy, Sweden and more, we are committed to serving our clients. We look forward to meeting demand from European law firms in areas such as collective redress, securities claims and competition-related litigation, in addition to more award and judgment monetization work with our corporate clients.”

The composition of Burford’s global team as of May 11, 2023 of more than 150 employees – and more than 60 of whom are lawyers – reflects its category leadership as well as its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, as half of Burford’s team are women, racial minorities or self-identify as LGBTQ+.

Since its last hiring announcement in November 2021, Burford has expanded its industry-leading global team, including the following senior employees:

Experienced leaders join as Treasurer and Chief Compliance Officer

  • Juan Jimenez, CFA, is Treasurer, based in New York, with responsibility for overseeing all activities and risks related to liquidity and cash management, funding, currency and interest rates, as well as managing relationships with rating agencies. Mr. Jimenez most recently worked as Director of Corporate Treasury at Colgate-Palmolive.
  • Monika Singh, IACCP®, is Chief Compliance Officer, based in Chicago, responsible for overseeing and managing Burford’s compliance with all applicable regulatory, internal policy and procedural requirements. Ms. Singh has over a decade of experience in compliance management. Prior to joining Burford, Ms. Singh was Chief Compliance Officer at 50 South Capital Advisors.

Additional growth of Burford’s industry-leading investment team

  • Christopher Dore is a Director in Chicago with responsibility for overseeing Burford’s underwriting of and investment activity in nationwide consolidated litigation and other complex commercial matters. Mr. Dore was previously Partner-in-Charge of case development, investigations and client acquisition at Edelson PC.
  • Charles Griffin is a Vice President in New York responsible for evaluating and executing new investment opportunities and overseeing investments in Burford’s portfolio. Prior to joining Burford, Mr. Griffin was a litigator at Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz.
  • Victoria Fox is a Vice President in London focused on commercial litigation, asset recovery and enforcement. Prior to joining Burford, Ms. Fox was a litigator at Stephenson Harwood.
  • Charlie Rooke is a Vice President in London with a focus on complex commercial and competition litigation matters in the UK and Europe. Mr. Rooke was previously a Senior Counsel at the Royal Bank of Canada.

Business origination team adds top industry experts

  • Patrick Dempsey is a Director in New York responsible for originating new business with US law firms and companies. Mr. Dempsey was previously the US Chief Investment Officer and a Board Member at Therium Capital Management.
  • Jonathan Owen is a Vice President in California with responsibility for originating new business with US law firms and companies. Prior to joining Burford, Mr. Owen was a Funding Director at Law Finance Group.

Top global legal talent joins the business

  • Shreya Gulati is Corporate Counsel in New York with a focus on Burford’s investments in the U.S. Prior to joining Burford, Ms. Gulati was an Associate at Weil, Gotshal & Manges.
  • Richard Lee is Corporate Counsel in London with responsibility for overseeing Burford’s investments in the UK, EMEA and Asia. Prior to joining Burford, Mr. Lee was a Managing Associate at Linklaters.
  • Anastasiya Lisovskaya is Corporate Counsel in New York responsible for the legal processes around Burford’s reporting obligations and compliance with securities laws. Ms. Lisovskaya was previously a Senior Corporate Associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.
  • Richard McGarry is Counsel in London with responsibility for leading Burford’s compliance program in the UK, Europe and Asia-Pacific. Mr. McGarry was previously a Managing Associate in Addleshaw Goddard’s Global Investigations team.

About Burford Capital

Burford Capital is the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law. Its businesses include litigation finance and risk management, asset recovery and a wide range of legal finance and advisory activities. Burford is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BUR) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE: BUR), and it works with companies and law firms around the world from its offices in New York, London, Chicago, Washington, DC, Singapore, Sydney, Hong Kong and Dubai.

For more information, please visit www.burfordcapital.com.

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Harris Pogust Joins Bryant Park Capital as Senior Advisor

By John Freund |

Bryant Park Capital (“BPC”) a leading middle market investment bank and market leader in the litigation finance sector, is pleased to announce that Harris Pogust has joined the firm as a Senior Advisor.  Harris (Mr. Pogust) is one of the best known and prominent attorneys in the mass tort and class action fields, he was the founding partner and Chairman of Pogust Goodhead worldwide until early 2024 and is currently working with Trial Lawyers for a Better Tomorrow, a charity Harris founded, to help children reach their educational potential all over the world.  Harris’ life work has been to deliver justice for those who have been damaged or injured through the negligence or bad faith of others.

“We are thrilled to have Harris as part of our team.  His knowledge, experience and relationships in the litigation finance sector are of great value to Bryant Park and our clients.  As the litigation finance world becomes more competitive, complex and challenging, having an expert like Harris on our team is invaluable,” said Joel Magerman, Managing Partner of Bryant Park.

Harris’ efforts, in conjunction with Bryant Park will focus on assisting law firms and funders in developing strategies to more efficiently fund their operations and cases and assist them in establishing the right relationships for future growth.  Harris commented, “I have been fortunate to have been a practicing attorney and partner in law firms for over 35 years focused on building and growing a worldwide book of business in the class action/mass tort field.  That required significant capital and throughout my career I have raised over $1 billion for my firms.  I have learned what works and what doesn’t.  I have seen both the risks and rewards in this industry.  I look forward to being able to work with law firms and funders to assist them in putting the right strategies in place with Bryant Park and bringing capital and liquidity to help them grow and flourish.”

About Bryant Park Capital

Bryant Park Capital is an investment bank providing capital raising, M&A and corporate finance advisory services to emerging growth and middle market public and private companies. BPC has deep expertise and a diversified, well-founded breadth of experience in a number of sectors, including specialty finance & financial services. BPC has raised various forms of credit, growth equity, and assisted in mergers and acquisitions for its clients. Our professionals have completed more than 400 assignments representing an aggregate transaction value of over $30 billion.

For more information about Bryant Park Capital, please visit www.bryantparkcapital.com.

Announcements Commercial

Therium Capital Advisors Launched to Provide Litigation Finance Advisory Services

By John Freund |

Therium Capital Advisors (TCA) announced today the launch of its independent advisory services business dedicated to helping claimants, law firms and corporates to source, structure and secure litigation finance. TCA offers end-to-end support including funding strategy, investor engagement, financial modelling, deal structuring, ongoing case management and secondary market advisory. Based in London, the firm is advising on deals in the UK, continental Europe and Australia.

Therium Capital Advisors is led by litigation funding pioneer Neil Purslow and co-founded by investment banker Harry Stockdale. Neil has over 16 years of experience in litigation finance, raising capital and investing worldwide across all forms of litigation finance from single cases funding through to portfolio, corporate and law firm funding arrangements. Harry was previously head of UK M&A at investment bank Haitong with twenty years of experience in investment banking, advising law firms and litigation funders on complex financial transactions.  

TCA is the first advisory firm to provide clients with advisory services that are backed by a deep understanding of litigation finance investing coupled with the financial and transactional expertise of investment banking. Therium Capital Advisors bridges the gap between claimants, law firms and corporates on the one side and existing and new sources of institutional capital on the other.  Through the combined expertise of its founders, TCA opens up the investor universe that is available to clients and drives quality in the investment propositions, efficiency in the funding process and competition in the funding market.

TCA exclusively advises claimants, law firms and corporates, ensuring that it remains conflict-free.  The firm advises across the full range of legal assets including single case and portfolio funding, law firm financing, financing options for corporates and existing portfolios of legal assets.   

Neil Purslow, co-founder and Managing Partner of Therium Capital Advisors said: “We are at a pivotal moment in the development of the legal finance industry, given the relative paucity of traditional funding capital available.  However, we are seeing a shift towards new categories of investors in legal assets who want exposure to this uncorrelated asset class. By leveraging our unrivalled experience across both litigation funding and investment banking, we are assisting our clients to navigate this landscape with confidence, speed and understanding, and we provide them with access to a broader set of funding options and to meet their funding needs efficiently and cost effectively.”

Harry Stockdale, co-founder and Partner of Therium Capital Advisors said: “We are bringing an investment banking mind set to the litigation funding world which has developed largely without the benefit of specialist advisors. This professionalisation of the funding process will make the sector more efficient and accessible to a wider audience of investors in addition to the traditional litigation funders. We are already seeing the benefit of this, for both clients and investors alike, and is part of the maturing of litigation finance as an asset class.”

Therium Capital Advisors provides the following services to claimants, law firms and corporates:

  • Deal Preparation: Preparing funding propositions to be investment-ready.
  • Capital Sourcing: Identifying and engaging with suitable funders and capital providers from across the spectrum of legal assets investors.
  • Financial Modelling and Analysis: Providing robust financial modelling and scenario analysis to evaluate deal structures and model returns.
  • Investor Materials and Outreach: Advising on the preparation of investor-facing materials and documentation, inserting rigour and discipline to ensure efficiency in the funding process.
  • Co-Funding: Advising on the identification and engagement of potential co-investors to optimise risk-sharing and capital raising.
  • Negotiating Funding Terms: Leading negotiations with investors to secure terms which balance commercial viability with the interests of the funded party.
  • Deal Structuring and Documentation: Advising on deal structures and overseeing the drafting and execution of all relevant documentation.
  • Post-Funding Case Management: Providing ongoing monitoring, reporting, and servicing support post-funding on behalf of the claimant, to manage risks and support positive case outcomes.
  • Secondary Market Advisory: Advising on secondary transactions of existing legal assets including sub-funding arrangements and exits.

More information can be found at: www.therium.com/theriumcapitaladvisors

Announcements Commercial

Gryphon Law Launches as Contingency-Fee Firm for International Disputes

By John Freund |

A new player is entering the international disputes arena—this time with a distinct twist on legal funding. Gryphon Law has officially launched as the first law firm globally to specialize in contingency-fee representation for cross-border disputes.

Gryphon Law aims to offer an alternative to third-party litigation funding by shouldering the cost of legal claims in return for a share of the outcome. Based in New York and with plans to expand into London and Miami, the firm targets clients who might otherwise turn to traditional funders, offering instead to partner with them directly through performance-based fee structures.

The firm was founded by John Templeman, a seasoned international disputes attorney qualified in New York, England & Wales, and Australia, who previously held roles at leading global law firms. Templeman has assembled a multilingual team capable of handling the full lifecycle of international litigation and arbitration in English, Spanish, and French—from initiation to enforcement. Co-founding the venture is Daura Dutour, an 18-year disputes veteran with experience in the U.S., France, and Haiti, supported by three additional associates.

Templeman stated: "I believe there's a real opportunity in the market to provide clients with an appealing alternative to third party funding, particularly in the sub-US$30 million value range below where many of the funders operate. I've been fortunate to assemble a world-class team of disputes lawyers who share this vision – we're looking forward to contributing to this rapidly evolving field.”

Gryphon Law’s business model suggests a more vertically integrated approach to litigation finance—embedding the funder role within the law firm itself. For clients, this could mean greater alignment of interests, fewer intermediaries, and possibly reduced costs when compared to traditional third-party funding arrangements.