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Proskauer Director Joins Augusta as Chief Operating Officer

Augusta, the UK’s largest litigation and dispute funding institution by case volume - with a team of 70 in London - today announces the appointment of Polly Bahl as Chief Operating Officer, based in London. Polly joins from US law firm Proskauer Rose where, as London Director of Professional and Administrative Resources, she coordinated a range of operational functions. A solicitor by training, Polly qualified with SJ Berwin (now King & Wood Mallesons) where she became a partner specialising in private investment funds, a role which latterly incorporated various operational responsibilities.

Polly’s hiring is the latest addition to Augusta’s senior team following the recent arrivals of Gowling WLG Partner James Foster as Head of International Arbitration and FTI Consulting Managing Director Leor Franks as Chief Marketing Officer. These additions reflect Augusta’s ongoing growth and increasing client demand for dispute and litigation funding. Commenting on the appointment, Louis Young, Managing Director at Augusta, said: “We’re delighted to welcome Polly to Augusta. We’ve been looking to fill this role for some time, and with her wide experience of corporate functions including Risk, IT, HR and Finance and her legal background, Polly will play a key role in this important phase of our growth”. Polly Bahl commented: “I’m really pleased to be part of the continued expansion of Augusta’s operations given the exciting opportunities for further development in the UK and internationally. I’m very much looking forward to working with Augusta's capable team and to help further develop a leading player in litigation and dispute funding”.

About Augusta Ventures:

- Established in 2013, Augusta is the largest litigation and dispute funding institution in the UK by # cases with a team of 70 in London and 85 worldwide. Augusta’s scale enables us to make decisions in market-leading timeframes and fund cases of any size. - Augusta is organised into a series of specialist practice groups: Arbitration, Class Action, Competition, Consumer, Intellectual Property and Litigation, and sectors including Financial Services and Construction & Energy. - By the end of H12019, Augusta had funded 213 claims with a market-leading win ratio of over 80%. - Augusta recently announced £25m funding deals with international law firm Pinsent Masons and leading litigation law firm HFW.

MENA’s Pre-Eminent Financial Restructuring Summit Returns to Dubai This September

Dubai: Middle East Global Advisors, a leading financial intelligence platform spearheading the development of knowledge-based economies in the MENASEA markets, will convene The 2nd Annual Corporate Restructuring Summit (CRS 2019) - the MENA region’s pre-eminent Debt Restructuring and NPL-focused Summit, in strategic partnership with Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) on September 11-12 at the Address Dubai Mall in Dubai, UAE. Addressing the theme of “Emergence of New Alliances: Managing Debt & Non-Performing Loans”, the summit’s vision is to facilitate an enabling environment to address the key challenges associated with financial restructuring of corporate debts, effective management of non-performing assets and enabling capital adequacy and profitability through exploring mergers & acquisitions. As a strategic partner of the Summit, Steve Barnett, Executive Director, Business Development, Abu Dhabi Global Market said, “In today’s complex and increasingly volatile marketplace, companies need a stable and conducive environment to grow their businesses. As an innovative and progressive International Financial Centre, ADGM provides a holistic suite of business and licensing solutions, a robust regulatory platform and world-class legislation for entities and corporates to operate efficiently, restructure their business effectively and achieve their ambition in Abu Dhabi, the Middle East and beyond. We look forward to meeting the banks, corporates, funds and restructuring specialists to discuss and exchange insights of current challenges of restructuring and strategic reorganisation of finance and debt-related matters." Following the oil price slump in 2014, numerous industry sectors – predominantly oil & gas, real estate and construction experienced substantial liquidity shortage, leaving corporates heavily invested in these sectors and reliant on Government spending with diminishing profits and an inability to service existing debt exposures and project finances, spiking up the region’s NPL portfolios. In consequence, corporate workouts and financial restructuring have become the norm to aid organizations with troubled balance sheets to combat debt delinquencies and defaults. The recent wave of restructuring reforms in the GCC with UAE issuing the Bankruptcy Law in 2016 - the first of its kind in the region and one at par with international insolvency standards - aims at modernising the existing regime to offer debtors greater opportunities for reorganisation, provide simplified liquidation process, ensure fair treatment of creditors, all of which will boost investor confidence enabling FDIs into the region. Economic stability continues to be a high-priority for the UAE with His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minster of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, enacting a new DIFC Insolvency Law that will come into effect in August 2019 as it aims at balancing the needs of all stakeholders in the context of distressed and bankruptcy related situations in DIFC. Adding to the ongoing wave of regulatory reforms in GCC’s financial sector, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain introduced their respective bankruptcy laws in 2018, encouraging corporate reorganisation over liquidation. In Saudi Arabia, with the National Transformation Programme 2020 and Vision 2030 setting the stage for major transformation with the aim of optimizing the Kingdom’s business & investment climate, the Bankruptcy Law was introduced as part of Saudi Arabia’s regulatory reforms with the aim of further strengthening the Kingdom’s business environment. To broaden the perspective on Saudi Arabia’s transformation drive, the summit will see an Opening Keynote address by Dr. Fahad Alshathri, Deputy Governor – Supervision, Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) assessing the state of the credit market and measuring the impact of corporate debt on the global and regional economy. The summit will also play host to Mr. Majed Al-Rasheed, Secretary General, Bankruptcy Commission as he shares insights in the Regulators’ Panel focusing on Driving economic growth via FDIs, M&As and minimizing bad debt portfolios. Among the first organizations to avail and benefit from the Saudi Bankruptcy Law, was Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi & Brothers (AHAB), in their bid to achieve successful financial restructuring involving 100+ creditors, following a 10-year long settlement process. Speaking ahead of the Exclusive CEO’s panel, Simon Charlton, Chief Restructuring Officer & Acting Chief Executive Officer, Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi & Brothers said, “The process of social and economic reform in Saudi Arabia under the guidance of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz continues with pace. One of the more significant economic/business developments in the past twelve months has been the enactment of the new Bankruptcy law. Since the beginning of 2019 we have seen the first uses of the New Saudi Arabian Bankruptcy Law; debtors and creditors are availing themselves of the tools and protections of this new law. There are a number of very high profile cases currently before the courts and this is a serious and robust test of this new law and there is significant interest in Saudi Arabia and internationally as to how effective the new procedures for protective settlement, financial restructuring and liquidation will be and how the courts and the various professionals involved particularly Bankruptcy trustees will perform.” Speaking ahead of the regulators panel, Adnan Ahmed Yousif, Chairman, Bahrain Association & Banks and President & Chief Executive, Al Baraka Banking Group expressed, “In the wake of several countries that have had the misfortune of succumbing to the aftermath of a financial crisis, difficulties faced by financial institutions and corporates, and resulted accumulation of NPLs, the 2nd Annual Corporate Restructuring Summit gains substantial importance for both financial institutions and regulators and other governmental bodies. I am honored to be part of an esteemed panel and look forward to discuss Bahrain’s efforts in fostering a supportive environment for businesses in varying stages of its lifecycle, a strong factor that will attract FDIs into the region. In addition, I would like to discuss the different strategies adopted by Bahraini Banks to combat the challenge of NPLs, asset quality and capital adequacy.” If the challenge of rising non-performing assets is not addressed, it can cripple banks’ cash flows and lending abilities, with serious negative consequences reflected throughout the economy. As banks look for ways to clean their balance sheet and dispose non-core assets, they drive opportunities for mergers and acquisitions (M&As) and establishment of distressed loan sale market for potential buyers and sellers. Speaking ahead of the panel on Managing NPL portfolios & driving down regional average, Manoj Chawla, Group Chief Risk Officer, Emirates NBD said, “As the MENA market becomes more sophisticated with respect to debt restructurings there are new and innovative solutions to address the NPL portfolio of local lenders. We are increasingly seeing local lenders explore portfolio-based solutions, debt for equity swaps, secondary market sales and litigation financing as means to address their ever growing NPL books. The local banks are now also better equipped than earlier to deal with distressed situations with experienced work out teams and more advanced risk management procedures. Lenders are also identifying issues early and seeking to work with their customers to address problems in an objective manner.” Key Industry Veterans from leading banks and corporates will headline The Corporate Restructuring Summit 2019 as it aims to spearhead discussions gravitating around the three high-stake areas of effective NPL management, debt restructuring and Mergers & Acquisitions.The confirmed industry leaders at the summit include: Dr. Fahad Alshathri, Deputy Governor - Supervision, Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA); Tareq A. Al-Sadhan, Chief Executive Officer, Riyad Bank; Richard Hinchley, Chief Risk Officer, The Saudi British Bank (SABB); Mike Grant, Chief Restructuring Officer, Drake & Scull; David McDiarmid, Partner, Resolute Asset Management; Bruno Navarro, Senior Adviser, Rothschild, Managing Director, IPSO FACTO; Richard Clarke, Senior Vice President – Business Development and Mergers & Acquisitions, GEMS Education; Mohammed Riaz, Head of Financial Restructuring Department, Kuwait Finance House Bahrain; Esteban Buljevich, Head of Special Assets & Restructuring Department, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank; Naveed Kamal, Corporate Bank Head Middle East & North Africa (MENA), Citi; Amine Antari, Managing Director, Kroll & Sassan Hatam, Partner, Roland Berger, among others. Key Features at CRS 2019 include: Keynote Addresses on bolstering economic growth in the MENA by fostering a conducive environment for doing business & transaction forecasts for MENA 2021; Exclusive CEO’s Panel analyzing some of MENA’s biggest workouts; Regulators Panel on driving economic growth via FDIs, M&As and minimizing bad debt portfoliosKey Panels focused on mergers, acquisitions and divestiture, distressed investing and NPL servicing platforms, managing NPL portfolios and driving down regional average & more. Partners at CRS 2019 include Resolute Asset Management, Eyad Reda Law Firm, Roland Berger, Kroll & Omni Bridgeway. The summit’s Bankruptcy Regulatory Partner is Bankruptcy Commission, Association Partner is Saudi Banks while CNBC Arabia is the Official Broadcast Partner. The summit is expected to draw participation from over 300 prominent banks, corporates, legal-advisory firms, hedge funds, investment banks and debt restructuring specialists from across the MENA onto one platform by spearheading actionable debate, impactful change and high-level outcomes. To find out more about CRS 2019, please visit: www.crs19.com Join the global conversation on Twitter at: @CorpRS #CorpRestructure19 ABOUT THE CORPORATE RESTRUCTURING SUMMIT (CRS) The Corporate Restructuring Summit is an initiative of Middle East Global Advisors, the first of its kind that aims to explore innovative approaches to corporate debt restructuring and NPL management in context of the complex market dynamics in the Middle East North Africa (MENA) region. The summit will gather banks, corporates, legal-advisory firms and debt restructuring specialists from across the MENA onto one platform by spearheading actionable debate, impactful change and high-level outcomes. To find out more, visit www.crs19.com  or follow us on Twitter @CorpRS ABOUT MIDDLE EAST GLOBAL ADVISORS (MEGA) Connecting markets with intelligent insights & strategic execution since 1993 Middle East Global Advisors (MEGA) is the leading gateway connectivity and intelligence platform to Islamic finance opportunities in the rapidly developing economic region that stretches all the way from Morocco in the West to Indonesia in the East- The Middle East North Africa Southeast Asia (MENASEA) connection. For 26 years, our exclusive focus on achieving business results for the Islamic finance industry has enabled us to create significant value for the leading players in the Islamic banking, finance and investment markets. Visit us at www.meglobaladvisors.com  or follow us on Twitter @meglobaladvisor Aanchal Dhawan Marketing Manager Middle East Global Advisors Tel: +971 4 441 4946 Email: aanchal@meglobaladvisors.com

Law Firm Financing in the Wake of the NYC Bar Opinion

Last year, the New York City Bar Association issued an advisory opinion suggesting that funding agreements between lawyers and third party funders violates ABA Model Rule 5.4(a), which prohibits fee sharing with non-lawyers. The opinion has sparked furious debate (and much consternation) in the litigation funding community ever since. But practically speaking, how has the NYC Bar's opinion impacted law firm funding? As reported in Above the Law, the Bar's opinion - although strictly advisory in nature - has the potential to sway law firms on the issue of whether or not to seek funding, given such a strict interpretation of Rule 5.4(a). The key issue at the heart of Rule 5.4(a) is the independence of the lawyer when accepting outside funding. To that end, recourse funding has never been prohibited, given that it is widely understood most businesses need recourse funding (loans) in order to expand. Yet it can be argued that non-recourse funding (i.e. third party funding) may restrict a lawyer's independence, given that repayment is contingent on the outcome of the case, which incentivizes the funder to intervene in case strategy. Of course, the funding community counters that its funding agreements render them passive investors, and that the terms therein stipulate that they will not exert control over case strategy. Yet suspicions to the contrary persist. And clearly the NYC Bar wanted to make a statement that in terms of ethical concerns, non-recourse funding is to be treated differently from recourse funding. Although many in the funding community are crying foul over that logic. Although the NYC Bar has no intention of revisiting its opinion, it has established a Litigation Funding Working Group to examine an ethical framework for third party funding. The Working Group's findings are due to be released later this year.

Should Litigation Funders Worry About Kirkland’s Push into Contingency-Fee Litigation?

Recently, law firm Kirkland & Ellis announced a ten-fold increase in investment dollars towards contingency-fee plaintiff-side claims. Alternative fee arrangements have been the most profitable component of the law firm thus far, so management figures 'why not roll the dice' on what's already been working? The question now is: is Kirkland's approach a harbinger of things to come? And if so, how will this impact litigation funders down the road? As reported in Big Law Business, litigation funders have long provided a platform for traditionally risk averse law firms to expose themselves to more risk. While this has turned funding into an extremely profitable industry, it has also created a bit of a double-edged sword. After all, if big law firms like Kirkland start taking on more risk, what do they need litigation funders for? Longford Capital co-founder Michael Nicolas notes this concern, but insists we're not anywhere near a tipping point at the moment. He points out that Kirkland made headlines with its announcement precisely because its decision is so unique. If other big law firms were doing what Kirkland is doing, no one would have batted an eye. The argument essentially is that Big Law is slow to change, and there are still major gaps in the market; namely, the skyrocketing cost of lawsuits which restricts access to justice. As long as those gaps exist, funders have a place at the table. Of course, as Nicolas further notes, in a fully-efficient market, Big Law would actually be competing with litigation funders. They have the money and manpower to adopt the added risk of contingency-fee claims, as Kirkland is now doing. Which means that by exposing Big Law to outsized risk (and the outsized returns that come with it), litigation funders may in fact be breeding their eventual competitors.

Legal-Bay Pre Settlement Funding Preparing For Numerous Bayer Lawsuits

JERSEY CITY, N.J.July 22, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Legal-Bay LLC, The Pre Settlement Funding Company, announced today that they have recently seen an increase in Essure birth control lawsuits, and are preparing for numerous presettlement payouts in the coming months.

The Essure brand birth control device is put out by Bayer, who is accused of knowingly distributing a faulty product. More than 17,000 plaintiffs have claimed serious pain and suffering from broken devices including device migration and perforated organs. Bayer continues to deny any wrongdoing and stands by the safety of its product, with all intentions of defending itself against the many lawsuits already filed, and the many more sure to come.

In spite of past dismissals, CaliforniaIllinois, and Pennsylvania courts are currently selecting bellwether trial cases and setting court dates. The largest number of pending cases is in California, and their courts have compiled the largest collection of documents and information regarding the Essure devices. California and Pennsylvania are looking to try their cases sometime in 2019, while Illinois courts have already set a trial date, albeit not until 2020.

Chris Janish, CEO of Legal-Bay commented, "Legal-Bay has seen an increase in the filings for Bayer's Essure device. While there are no settlements or jury verdicts in these lawsuits, we nevertheless remain committed to assisting plaintiffs with their presettlement cash advance needs."

If you are involved in an Essure birth control lawsuit and are looking for presettlement cash now, you can fill out an application at: http://lawsuitssettlementfunding.com

Legal-Bay is a leading personal injury pre-settlement advocate, and works directly with many of the top mass tort law firms to provide the best pre-settlement cash advance rates in the industry in as little as 24 – 48 hours. If you do not have an attorney, Legal-Bay can assist you with retaining a top lawyer or law firm that specializes in Essure cases.

All of Legal-Bay funding programs are risk-free as you only repay the advance if your case is successful. The non-recourse advance is not a lawsuit loan, lawsuit loans, pre settlement loan, or pre-settlement loans.

Please apply online at:  http://lawsuitssettlementfunding.com or call the company's toll free hotline at: 877.571.0405 where agents are standing by.

Source:  Legal-Bay LLC

How Dividex Packaged a Pair of Danish Class Actions for Litigation Funding

Dividex, the international securities class action broker and case manager, wanted in on a Novo Nordisk class action after the stock shed over $50B in the wake of fraud allegations. The only problem? No litigation funders would bite, given that the Danish Pharma company would have to face the scales of justice on its home turf (international securities actions can no longer be tried in the U.S., pursuant to a 2010 Supreme Court decision). And since funding is needed to get an international securities action off the ground, the deal was dead in the water. Until, that is, Dividex packaged the deal into its own version of a portfolio funding arrangement. As reported in Institutional Investor, Dividex is run by Irwin Schwartz, an attorney who founded law firm BLA Schwartz. Schwartz formed Dividex in 2013 after recognizing a gap in the market - international securities actions cost money to get moving, and funders don't typically have the time or means to source deals themselves (sourcing requires investigating precipitous stock drops and tying those to corporate malfeasance). Hence, Dividex acts a broker and case manager. Schwartz wanted the Novo Nordisk deal, so he bundled it with another high profile Danish securities claim - the Danske bank case (the banks was accused of facilitating Russian money laundering). Schwartz wrangled two of the nation's largest pensions - CalSTRS and the Teacher Retirement System of Texas into the portfolio funding deal. He also secured funding from IMF Bentham, which agreed to accept a fee structure based on the losses of all institutions who participate in the deal (as opposed to a straight back-end percentage or investment multiple). This is the first known case of U.S. institutions grouping together to partner with funders on an international case. Now that Schwartz has broken the mold, expect more examples to follow suit.

Legal-Bay Pre Settlement Funding Focusing On IVC Filter Cases

JERSEY CITY, N.J.July 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Legal-Bay LLC, The Pre Settlement Funding Company, announced today that they continue to see a large volume of IVC filter patients needing cash advances. Top IVC filter manufacturers have recently lost bellwether trials, and Legal-Bay believes this could signal a shift toward settling pending cases within the upcoming months. IVC filters are devices which inhibit blood clots in patients, preventing pulmonary embolisms. 80% of the filters sold are put out by C.R. Bard and Cook, and juries in recent litigation are finding that many of these devices are proving defectivePlaintiffs claim they are dealing with perforations, shifting after implantation, filter fractures, and general ineffectiveness. Cook specifically has already lost a major trial when an Indianapolis jury awarded $3 million to a woman who suffered a cardiac injury from her faulty IVC filter. And with mass tort filings in FloridaPennsylvania, and California state courts, many more bellwether trials are slated to occur. *As of June 2019, there have been over 9,000 IVC cases filed nationwide.  Chris Janish, CEO of Legal-Bay, commented, "We are seeing a lot of applications regarding IVC plaintiffs needing lawsuit cash as trials with Bard and Cook loom closer. To date, no settlements have occurred and there are no assurances that Bard or Cook will settle their claims or for what values. Regardless, we continue to aid plaintiffs who've suffered injuries from these devices." If you are involved in an IVC lawsuit and are looking for a pre-settlement cash advance now before your case settles, you can fill out an application form at the company's website: http://lawsuitssettlementfunding.com Legal-Bay is a leading personal injury pre-settlement advocate, and works directly with many of the top mass tort law firms to provide the best pre-settlement cash advance rates in the industry in as little as 24-48 hours.  They urge people who have not yet contacted a lawyer to reach out now; Legal-Bay can assist you with retaining a top IVC lawyer or law firm that works with clients who need funding. All of Legal-Bay's funding programs are risk-free as you only repay the advance if your case is successful. Please apply online at: http://lawsuitssettlementfunding.com or call: 877.571.0405

Canadian Innovator JL Energy Transportation Inc. Successfully Defends Patent Challenge From Major Canada/US Pipeline and Gas Processing Companies

CALGARYJuly 17, 2019 /CNW/ - JL Energy Transportation Inc. ("JETI", more: www.jlenergy.com) announces that it has successfully defended a Federal Court challenge to its gas transportation patent, with the Court confirming the validity of its key patent terms. This endorsement clears the way for JETI's continuation of its license and patent infringement claims against an alliance of major Canadian and US pipeline and gas processing companies. The defendant companies currently include: Alliance Pipeline Limited Partnership, Alliance Pipeline Ltd., Alliance Pipeline L.P., Alliance Pipeline Inc., (collectively, "Alliance"), Aux Sable Liquid Products LP (formerly known as Alliance Pipeline NGL, LP) and Aux Sable Liquid Products Inc. (formerly known as Alliance Pipeline NGL Inc.)(together, "Aux Sable").  As previously announced on March 6, 2019, JETI is claiming significant damages as a result of Alliance's and Aux Sable's alleged infringements of JETI's licences and intellectual property rights. Background In the early 1990s a team led by John Lagadin, the founder of JETI, invented a novel and innovative method for more efficiently and cost-effectively transporting enriched natural gas via a single pipeline carrying both natural gas and natural gas liquids ("NGLs") from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin to the lucrative US mid-western natural gas and NGL market. It was a ground-breaking invention that caught the eye of 22 producers, including some of North America's largest energy companies. These companies subsequently formed the "Alliance Pipeline" which went into service December 1, 2000. JETI licensed the technology (subsequently patented in a number of jurisdictions around the world) to the Alliance and Aux Sable companies, who between 1996 and 2000 planned and constructed a 3,848 km pipeline from BC and Alberta to Chicago as part of an integrated energy system to export Western Canadian enriched natural gas to be processed at the US market hub in a world class processing facility.  The Alliance Pipeline was one of the most significant infrastructure projects in North America at the time. It has since delivered an average of 1.6 billion cubic feet of enriched gas every day to the Chicago market (more than 1/5th of Canada's natural gas exports). This major success story of Canadian innovation, built on the entrepreneurialism of the JETI team, has provided Canada access to a valuable export market and contributed billions of dollars to Canada's GDP and Alberta's royalty revenues. Proceedings JETI alleges in Alberta Court of Queen's Bench Court File No. 1601-06322 that Alliance and Aux Sablehave in recent years used its proprietary and patented technology to transport and process rich natural gas on additional pipelines in British Columbia, Alberta and North Dakota without licence or authorization. Aux Sable subsequently challenged of one of JETI's patents in Federal Court File No. T-1612-16. The Federal Court invalidated claims 9 and 10, but decided that all of claims 1 through 8 of the patent are valid, being the key elements of the technology upon which the Alliance / Aux Sablesystem is built and continues to operate. As previously announced, Bentham IMF Capital Limited ("Bentham"), the Canadian arm of leading global litigation funder IMF Bentham (ASX:IMF) is funding JETI's actions against Alliance and Aux Sable. JETI is represented by MLT Aikins LLP. John Lagadin, President of JETI, said: "We are very pleased to have the Federal Court validate the key claims in our patent. This endorsement allows us to continue our already lengthy quest for justice, and we look forward to a successful outcome once the courts have been presented with the facts in the caseWe remain appreciative to have Bentham on board to successfully defend our patent and fund our continuing actions as their significant due diligence, capital at risk, and proven track record, validates our confidence in our long standing claims." About the Defendants The Alliance Pipeline system consists of an approximately 3,848-kilometre (2,391-mile) integrated Canadian and US natural gas transmission pipeline system, delivering rich natural gas from the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin and the Williston Basin to the Chicago market hub. The Alliance system delivers, on average, about 45.3 million standard cubic metres (or 1.6 billion standard cubic feet) of natural gas per day. More: www.alliancepipeline.com. Alliance Pipeline Limited Partnership (Alliance Canada) owns the Canadian portion of the Alliance Pipeline system. Alliance Pipeline L.P. (Alliance U.S.A.) owns the U.S. portion of the Alliance Pipeline system. Alliance is represented by Rose LLP. Aux Sable commenced operation as part of the Alliance Pipeline and Aux Sable dense phase gas system. At that time, two companies were established, one in the United States, and one in Canada, to manage the natural gas liquids business associated with the Alliance Pipeline. In 2010, a second U.S. company, Aux Sable Midstream (ASM) was established to focus on other midstream developments in the United StatesAux Sable owns and operates a world-scale natural gas liquids extraction and fractionation facility in Illinois near the terminus of the Alliance Pipeline. The facility is currently capable of processing 2.1 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas and can produce approximately 107,000 barrels per day of specification natural gas liquid products. Aux Sable's rich gas premiums provide market access to rich gas producers in Canada and the U.S. that cannot be realized through conventional field extraction and local NGL sales. Aux Sable is represented by McCarthy Tetrault LLP. About Bentham IMF Bentham IMF Capital Limited is the Canadian arm of IMF Bentham Limited (ASX: IMF), one of the leading global litigation & dispute financiers, headquartered in Australia and with offices in Canada, the US, SingaporeHong Kong and London. IMF has built its reputation as a trusted provider of innovative litigation funding solutions and has established an increasingly diverse portfolio of litigation & dispute financing assets. IMF has been a leading pioneer of litigation financing in Australia since 2001, playing a significant role in the initial steps towards a globalized industry via its international expansion in Canada, the US, Asia and Europe.  IMF has a highly experienced litigation funding team overseeing its investments delivering a 90% success rate across 179 completed cases (at 30 September 2018). More: www.benthamimf.ca. SOURCE JL Energy Transportation Inc.

The Perils of Crowdfunding Litigation

GoFundMe recently cancelled an Australian rugby player's crowdfunded legal campaign, and the story made international headlines. Now some experts are scrutinizing the ethical and practical concerns of crowdfunding litigation; some of which will sound very familiar to litigation funders, yet others are unique to the crowdfunding niche. According to the Australasian Lawyer, the underlying case involves ex-rugby player Israel Folau, who was fired from Rugby Australia in May after making anti-LGBT remarks. Folau turned to crowdfunding website GoFundMe to fund his legal campaign, only to have the site cancel his campaign on the grounds that his remarks violate their anti-discrimination policies. The case has made both national and international headlines, and has brought crowdfunding legal campaigns into the public spotlight, and raised all sorts of ethical concerns. Chief among them are issues of disclosure and privilege - two subjects very familiar to litigation funders. But there are unique concerns relating to crowdfunding. For one, when crowdfunding a legal campaign, claimants do not know who they are accepting money from. This naturally poses ethical concerns as law firms receive payment from unknown parties (not an issue where litigation funding is concerned). Another concern is whether the crowdfunded campaign waives privilege. Privilege battles have been waged in regard to litigation funding, but funders are sophisticated entities who often consult and advise the claimant's legal team - crowdfunders are not. This creates a potential dilemma and could prompt discovery motions by defense on the grounds that privilege has been waived. The Law Council of Australia is exploring the issue of crowdfunding and considering a regulatory framework. Other jurisdictions may soon follow suit. Courts may also jump into the fray, taking crowdfunding into account when issuing security for costs, for example. Just like litigation funding, the growth of crowdfunding's popularity is spurring calls for greater regulation.