Widespread economic uncertainty often gives rise to an increase in IP lawsuits, as companies seek to extract value from IP assets. Right now, regulatory changes are taking place around the world that will make things easier for patent holders.
The UK takes great pride in its legal system and the ability of that system to mete out justice for everyone. This was demonstrated last year, when a test case brought by the FCA was adjudicated in only seven months. It was ultimately resolved by the Supreme Court, which ruled that insurers must cover COVID-related losses for their policyholders.
It’s estimated that third-party funders put up over $2.3 billion a year to help get lawsuits off the ground. Despite those staggering numbers, the industry is poised for further growth. As COVID-related delays and work stoppages continue, the need for legal funding is expected to surge.
Burford Capital Limited, the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law, today released a business update on its 2020 activities. All figures in this disclosure are unaudited. Certain definitions are provided below; additional definitions, reconciliations and information are set out in Burford’s 2020 Interim Report, which is available on our website at the following address: www.burfordcapital.com/shareholders. As previously disclosed, Burford will announce full preliminary results for the year ended December 31, 2020 on March 24, 2021 at 08.00am EDT / 12.00pm GMT / 1.00pm CET.
After a forced liquidation in 2019, Neil Woodford is back. The former “Oracle of Oxford” announced his new business venture, WCM Partners, after a public apology for what transpired in his last business. The new venture will be based in Jersey and Buckinghamshire.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg continues his assault on class actions by making permanent what was meant to be a temporary regulatory shield. The extension of the COVID-inspired policy means that corporations breaching their disclosure obligations may now only be subjected to civil penalties in situations where they acted knowingly and with negligence or recklessness.
More often than not, corporate legal departments have their own preferred provider network of law firm partners. Periodically, these networks are reevaluated and updated to streamline strategy or control costs. These occasional reviews have become more frequent, and requests for proposals (RFPs) are up 25% from where they were in 2017. As restructuring and budget shortfalls are becoming increasingly common thanks to COVID, these panel reviews are likely to continue.
