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International Legal Finance Association (ILFA) Statement in Opposition to Forced Disclosure Legislation

By Harry Moran |
February 12, 2025

International Legal Finance Association (ILFA) Statement in Opposition to Forced Disclosure Legislation

Today, the International Legal Finance Association is announcing its opposition to the Litigation Transparency Act of 2025, which would force public disclosure of all financing in civil cases in federal courts. 

The sweeping nature of the bill would harm small-scale inventors, startups, small and family-owned businesses, and individual Americans who partner with legal funders because they otherwise would not have the resources to assert their rights, protect their property, and defend their livelihoods.  This bill would force disclosure of the sensitive details of their legal strategies and is a blatant attempt to further tilt the legal system in favor of the biggest corporate players resulting in a dramatic reduction in civil litigation against them.  This bill would also partially nullify liability for America’s largest tech and insurance companies. 

Paul Kong, Executive Director, said: 

“The effect of the legislation is devastating to the economic health of our nation and the Rule of Law. The bill would harm small businesses that have been wronged by large corporations and are seeking redress in court. There should never be a financial barrier to entry to civil litigation, and if this law is enacted, that is exactly what will happen. Only the litigants with enough money to support large professional legal teams for months of litigation will have a chance to protect their intellectual property from Big Tech’s infringement or to force Big Insurance to pay rightful claims. It is no surprise that the US Chamber of Commerce, the country’s largest insurance industry groups, and Big Tech have expressed support for the bill, as they all stand to benefit from a system like that. They are eager to preserve their ability to wield massive legal teams and resources to bully those they have harmed. 

This bill is a harmful solution in search of a problem. Courts already have the authority to order disclosure of financing when relevant and are in the best position to determine the relevancy of any financing agreement to the merits of the litigation. In the overwhelming majority of cases, courts have held that the details of legal finance agreements are not relevant to the underlying merits of cases and should be protected rather than turned over to the opposition in litigation. 

The bill’s corporate champions are trying to scare up support by invoking the specter of malign foreign actors exploiting our legal system but they cannot cite any actual examples of this threat materializing, with good reason. As civil litigation experts have noted repeatedly, existing law, court rules, and ethical guidelines provide litigants ample ability to maintain control of their cases and ensure attorneys don’t breach their duties of loyalty and confidentiality. Courts and corporate defendants themselves are also equipped to guard against the release of sensitive information, including through the issuance of a protective order. Lawmakers should oppose this effort and instead stand with small businesses to defend our free enterprise system. 

ILFA opposes the Litigation Transparency Act and will seek to educate the Members of the Judiciary Committee and the House of Representatives on the dangers of this legislation and the true motives of its proponents.” 

About the International Legal Finance Association 

The International Legal Finance Association (ILFA) represents the global commercial legal finance community, and its mission is to engage, educate and influence legislative, regulatory and judicial landscapes as the voice of the commercial legal finance industry. It is the only global association of commercial legal finance companies and is an independent, non-profit trade association promoting the highest standards of operation and service for the commercial legal finance sector. ILFA has local chapter representation around the world. 

For more information, visit www.ILFA.com and find us on LinkedIn and X.

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Harry Moran

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Apex Group Ltd Selected to Support Seven Stars Legal Group Ltd’s Pioneering Tokenised Litigation Fund in Dubai

By John Freund |

Apex Group Ltd (“Apex Group”), one of the world's largest fund administration and solutions providers, today announced it has been selected to provide fund administration and digital asset infrastructure for the anticipated Seven Stars Legal Group Ltd (“Seven Stars”) Tokenised Litigation Fund, a pioneering investment vehicle that will combine institutional-grade litigation finance with blockchain technology.

The proposed fund, targeting GBP 50-250 million in commitments with an anticipated first close of GBP 50 million by March 31, 2026, represents a significant innovation in alternative investments. Once launched, the tokenised structure is expected to reduce traditional investment minimums from GBP 1 million to GBP 50,000, making institutional-quality litigation finance accessible to a broader range of qualified investors.

Subject to regulatory approvals and successful fund structuring, Apex Group is positioned to provide comprehensive fund administration services, while its digital asset platform, Apex Digital 3.0 (including Tokeny), would handle the token issuance and management infrastructure. This dual capability positions Apex Group as the sole provider managing both traditional fund administration and digital asset components under one unified platform.

Upon launch, Seven Stars will act as Investment Manager responsible for portfolio selection and management.

“Our selection to support Seven Stars' innovative fund structure exemplifies our commitment to bridging traditional finance with digital innovation,” said Agnes Mazurek, Global Head of Digital Assets at Apex Group. “By providing both conventional fund administration and tokenisation infrastructure, we're positioned to help fund managers unlock new distribution channels and operational efficiencies while maintaining institutional-grade governance and compliance standards.”

Offering up to a capped 16% annual return backed by diversified UK litigation portfolios, Seven Stars brings significant experience to the venture, having already deployed over GBP 44 million in UK litigation finance and funded more than 56,000 legal claims with a proven track record of performance, together with a team which includes leading Silk, Louis Doyle KC, who sits on the board and Advisory Committee at Seven Stars.

“Apex Group's expertise in both traditional fund administration and digital assets makes them the ideal partner for this groundbreaking initiative,” said Leon Clarance, Chief Strategy Officer at Seven Stars. "Their infrastructure will enable us to deliver the operational efficiency gains of tokenisation while maintaining the rigorous compliance and reporting standards our institutional investors expect.”

Mazurek added: “We are pleased to be supporting Seven Stars in this groundbreaking project. Our mission at Apex Group is to help clients bridge the TradFi and DeFi universes and this project perfectly represents this connectivity.”

Planned Partnership Capabilities

The anticipated partnership would leverage several key Apex Group capabilities:

  • Fund Administration: NAV calculation, investor services, and regulatory reporting 
  • Digital Asset Infrastructure: Token issuance, custody, and lifecycle management via Apex Digital 3.0
  • Regulatory Compliance: Full regulatory oversight and compliance monitoring 
  • Investor Onboarding: Streamlined KYC/AML processes for both traditional and digital investors

The proposed tokenised structure would enable secondary trading after a 6-month lock-in period, providing liquidity options traditionally unavailable in litigation finance funds. Smart contract automation is projected to reduce administrative costs by up to 90%, with anticipated savings passed through to investors.

This announcement follows Apex Group's recent expansion of its digital asset capabilities in the DIFC, positioning the firm as a leader in supporting the convergence of traditional finance and blockchain technology in the Middle East's premier financial hub.

About Apex Group

Apex Group is dedicated to driving positive change in financial services while supporting the growth and ambitions of asset managers, allocators, financial institutions, and family offices. Established in Bermuda in 2003, the Group has continually disrupted the industry through its investment in innovation and talent.

Today, Apex Group sets the pace in fund and asset servicing and stands out for its unique single-source solution and unified cross asset-class platform which supports the entire value chain, harnesses leading innovative technology, and benefits from cross-jurisdictional expertise delivered by a long-standing management team and over 13,000 highly integrated professionals.   

Apex Group leads the industry with a broad and unmatched range of services, including capital raising, business and corporate management, fund and investor administration, portfolio and investment administration, ESG, capital markets and transactions support. These services are tailored to each client and are delivered both at the Group level and via specialist subsidiary brands.

The Apex Foundation, a not-for-profit entity, is the Group’s passionate commitment to empower sustainable change. 

About Seven Stars Legal

Seven Stars Legal is a specialist litigation finance provider focused on high-volume, precedent-based UK consumer claims. Founded by a team with over GBP 380 million in litigation finance experience, the company provides institutional investors with access to uncorrelated, asset-backed returns through secured lending to regulated UK law firms. Seven Stars has funded over 56,000 claims since 2022, maintaining a zero-default track record through its multi-layered security framework and AI-enhanced due diligence processes

Announcements Commercial

ILFA Welcomes Commissioner McGrath’s Rejection of EU Regulation for Third-Party Litigation Funding

By John Freund |

On 18 November 2025, European Commissioner for Justice Michael McGrath closed the final meeting of the EU’s High-Level Forum on Justice for Growth with a clear statement that the Commission does not plan new legislation on Third Party Litigation Funding (TPLF). 

He added that Forum participants also indicated that there is no need to further regulate third-party litigation funding.

Instead, Commissioner McGrath said the Commission will prioritise monitoring the implementation of the Representative Actions Directive (RAD) over any new legislative proposals. 

(video from 2.32 here). 

Paul Kong, Executive Director of the International Legal Finance Association (ILFA), said:  “We’re delighted to see Commissioner McGrath’s clear statement that EU regulation for third-party litigation funding is not planned. This appears to close any talk of the need for new regulation, which was completely without evidence and created considerable uncertainty for the sector.

Over several years, ILFA has consistently made the case that litigation funding plays a critical role in ensuring European businesses and consumers can access justice without financial limitations and are not disadvantaged against larger and financially stronger defendants. New legislation would have choked off the availability of financial support to level the playing field for claimants. 

We will continue to work closely with the Commission to share the experiences of our members on the implementation of the RAD across the EU, ensuring it also works for claimants in consumer group actions facing defendants with deep pockets.”

About ILFA

The International Legal Finance Association (ILFA) represents the global commercial legal finance community, and its mission is to engage, educate and influence legislative, regulatory and judicial landscapes as the global voice of the commercial legal finance industry. It is the only global association of commercial legal finance companies and is an independent, non-profit trade association promoting the highest standards of operation and service for the commercial legal finance sector. ILFA has local chapter representation around the world. For more information, visit www.ilfa.com or @ILFA_Official. 

About the High-Level Forum on Justice for Growth

European Commissioner for Justice Michael McGrath launched the High-Level Forum on Justice for Growth in March 2025 to bring together legal industry experts to “focus on and discuss together how justice policies can contribute to – and further support – European competitiveness and growth”. The final meeting of the Forum took place on 18 November 2025, in Brussels. 

Announcements Commercial

Pogust Goodhead Appoints Jonathan Edward Wheeler as Partner and Head of Mariana Litigation

By John Freund |

Pogust Goodhead law firm has appointed Jonathan Edward Wheeler as a partner and Head of Mariana Litigation, adding heavyweight firepower to the team driving one of the largest group claims in English legal history following the firm’s landmark liability win against BHP in the English courts.

Jonathan joins Pogust Goodhead from Morrison Foerster in London, where he was a leading commercial litigation partner, having served for seven years as office co-managing partner and for 15 years as Head of Litigation. A specialist in complex, cross-border disputes, Jonathan has extensive experience acting in high-value commercial litigation, civil fraud and asset tracing, international trust disputes, contentious insolvency and investigations across multiple jurisdictions.

In his new role, Jonathan will assume strategic leadership of the proceedings arising from the Mariana dam disaster against mining giant BHP, overseeing the continued development of the case into the damages phase and working closely with colleagues in Brazil, the UK, the Netherlands and beyond.

Howard Morris, Chairman at Pogust Goodhead said: “Jonathan is a heavyweight addition to Pogust Goodhead and to our Mariana team. His track record in running some of the most complex cross-border disputes in the English courts, together with his leadership experience, make him exactly the kind of senior figure we need after our historic liability victory. Our clients will benefit enormously from his expertise and judgment.”

Jonathan Wheeler said: “It is a privilege to join Pogust Goodhead at such a pivotal moment in the Mariana case. The recent liability judgment is a watershed for access to justice and corporate accountability. I am honoured to help lead the next phase of this extraordinary litigation and to work alongside a team that has shown such determination in seeking justice for hundreds of thousands of victims.”

Alicia Alinia, CEO at Pogust Goodhead said: “Bringing in lawyers of Jonathan’s calibre is a strategic choice. As we expand the depth and breadth of our disputes practice globally, we are investing in senior talent who can help us deliver justice at scale for our clients and build an even more resilient firm.”

The Mariana proceedings in England involve over 600,000 of Brazilian individuals, businesses, municipalities, religious institutions and Indigenous communities affected by the 2015 Fundão dam collapse in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Following the English court’s decision on liability on the 14th of November 2025, the case will now move into the next stage focused on damages and the quantification of losses on an unprecedented scale.