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Announcements Commercial

International Legal Finance Association Adds Orchard Global as New Member

The International Legal Finance Association (ILFA), the only global association of commercial legal finance companies, has announced the addition of Orchard Global to the organization’s rapidly growing membership base.  Orchard Global is a multi-strategy alternative asset management firm that launched its legal finance strategy in 2015 and has made over 100 legal finance investments across its managed funds. The firm launched its standalone legal finance fund in November of last year.  “As the only global association representing the commercial legal finance industry, ILFA is excited to welcome Orchard Global as its newest member,” said Gary Barnett, ILFA’s Executive Director. “Orchard’s addition continues to demonstrate that ILFA’s membership is made up of the world’s leading legal finance providers and to strengthen ILFA’s role in promoting the highest standards of operation and service for the commercial legal finance sector around the world.” “We are thrilled that the team at Orchard Global will be joining ILFA’s ranks,” said Neil Purslow, ILFA Chairman and Co-Founder of Therium, an ILFA member. “The addition of yet another leading legal finance provider will serve to bolster our efforts as the voice of the legal finance industry throughout the world.” “We look forward to joining the ILFA membership, supporting ILFA’s mission and deepening our collaboration with our colleagues across the industry,” said Co-Heads of Litigation Finance at Orchard Global, Ben Moss and Lara Melrose.  Orchard Global provides creative and flexible litigation financing solutions to lawyers and claimants, investing in commercial litigation and arbitration cases globally, with a focus on England and Europe, as well as other common law and other selective jurisdictions. The firm’s investments span a broad spectrum of commercial claim types and structures, including general commercial disputes, group actions, competition claims, insolvency-related disputes, law firm lending, equity stake investments and portfolio financing.  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 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 and find us on LinkedIn and X @ILFA_Official.  About Orchard Global Orchard  Global is an alternative asset manager providing transformational solutions to banks, asset managers, and other borrowers seeking capital solutions to complex problems. Orchard provides lending and risk-transfer solutions across a range of private and public markets strategies. Orchard Global manages capital on behalf of pensions, sovereigns, endowments, hospitals, educational institutions, families, and many others around the world. Orchard Global offers private credit and public credit strategies by leveraging its complex structuring capabilities, an in-house legal team, comprehensive credit expertise, and global reach.
Announcements Commercial Deals

Omni Bridgeway Announces: Secondary market transaction completed in relation to Fund 4’s IP portfolio

Omni Bridgeway Limited (Omni Bridgeway, OBL, Group) (ASX: OBL) announces that it has completed the sale of a 25% interest in a portfolio of 15 intellectual property (IP) investments (Investments) in Fund 4 (Fund) to an affiliate of GLS Capital Partners Fund II, LP (GLS) for an initial amount of US$21.5 million, representing a multiple on invested capital (MOIC) of 2.0x of the apportioned aggregated deployments to date.  GLS will receive a preferred return on its deployments alongside OBL, beyond which OBL retains further profit rights on the 25% interest.  The cash consideration is anticipated to be received within five business days.  The total committed capital of the Investments is US$104.4 million with total deployed capital of US$42.9 million. The future budgeted costs (committed but undeployed capital) of US$61.5 million will be split proportionately between the Fund and GLS.  The sale will be treated as a partial completion of each of the 15 Investments for our fund and performance reporting. The full estimated portfolio value (EPV) of the Investments, at 30 September 2023, was approximately A$3.3 billion, with the Fund’s remaining proportionate share being A$2.5 billion.  The transaction will result in the deconsolidation of the Investments and an estimated net gain before non-controlling interests (NCI) of approximately US$51.0 million EBITDA (after NCI of approximately US$4.6 million EBITDA) before management and performance fees.  The residual interests of the Investments will be recognised as “Litigation Investments - investment in associate” within the Group Consolidated Financial Statements.
Transaction detailsUS$ million
Cash consideration21.5
add fair value of the residual interest179.5
less derecognition of associated net assets, capitalised overheads, direct costs and expenses1(50.0)
Group net profit151.0
Attributable to NCI1(46.4)
Group net profit after NCI1,24.6
  1. Amounts are estimated and subject to finalisation of costs and audit of balances. 2. Excluding management and performance fees.
Raymond van Hulst, Managing Director and CEO, commented “The conclusion of this transaction with an expert litigation finance investor with strong IP capability demonstrates the continued growth and depth of the secondaries market as well as the intrinsic value of our portfolio. The thorough due diligence process undertaken affirms our belief in the value of the Investments.  “Opportunities in IP are expected to exceed our concentration limits within Fund 4, this deal strategically frees up capacity for this growing and highly accretive sub asset class. It enables us to redeploy capital towards our strong pipeline of new, attractively priced IP investments, while retaining majority ownership in the Investments. It furthermore supports diversification of our portfolio overall.  “This also reinforces our commitment to diversifying revenue sources, while concurrently mitigating underwriting risks, monetising the incremental value created from the portfolio and advancing our strategic priorities,” said Mr van Hulst.  Adam Gill, Managing Director of GLS commented “GLS is pleased to partner with Omni Bridgeway in this transaction which accomplishes important strategic goals for both parties. The transaction provides GLS an attractive risk-reward proposition in a highly diversified and collateralized portfolio of litigation finance investments, curated and managed by an industry leader. We look forward to our continued collaboration with Omni Bridgeway to maximize the value of this portfolio for our respective investors.”
Case Developments Commercial

£1.5M Settlement Approved by CAT in ‘Car Delivery Charges’ Class Action

Despite the ongoing consternation over the future of litigation funding’s role in UK class actions, we continue to see victories and major milestones achieved in funded cases over recent weeks. The approval of a settlement in the ‘car delivery charges’ class action represents another such success for claimants and their funders. Reporting by CDR confirms that the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) has approved the £1.5 million settlement in the opt-out class action brought against Compañía Sudamericana de Vapores (CSAV), following the settlement agreement being reached in October. The CAT approved the settlement in Mark McLaren v MOL and Others at a hearing on 6 December but have yet to publish a written judgement. Following the CAT’s approval, this now stands as the first ever settlement in a UK opt-out class action. Class representative Mark McLaren praised the approval of the settlement, saying that it would “provide redress to those British consumers and businesses who bought new cars and vans and have suffered a loss as a result of the cartel.”  Scott+Scott’s Belinda Hollway, who acted for the class representative, said that the CAT’s decision demonstrated “that collective settlements can be achieved and that the regime is working to deliver compensation to the victims of breaches of competition law.” Woodsford provided litigation funding for the claim. As LFJ reported in October, claims have been brought against five international shipping companies: MOL, “K” Line, NYK, WWL/EUKOR and CSAV, over allegations that they engaged in a price-fixing scheme between 2006 and 2015. The settlement with CSAV was hailed as a “significant milestone” by McLaren, but it still only represents a small portion of the overall class action, as CSAV is the smallest of the defendants with a 1.5% market share. The remaining four defendants are currently set to continue their defence at trial in 2025, having previously been censured by the CAT ‘for undermining the ethos of collective actions by communicating directly with class members.’
Commercial Regulatory Issues

UK Government’s Amendment to DMCC Bill Offers a Partial Solution to PACCAR Ruling

The UK litigation finance industry has been closely watching the government’s response to the Supreme Court’s PACCAR decision, with many hoping that there will be a quick legislative fix regarding the enforceability of litigation funding agreements (LFAs). According to one industry expert, a parliamentary debate held earlier this week has offered an indication of what shape a legislative solution may take. A post from Clyde & Co’s director of policy and government affairs, Alistair Kinley, provides insights into the recent debate on the House of Lords over the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill (DMCC), and its potential consequences for the government’s plans to provide a legislative solution to the PACCAR decision. Kinley highlights two key takeaways from a speech by Minister Viscount Camrose. Firstly, that it appears the government has acknowledged that the current amendment to the DMCC bill only addresses the issue of LFA enforceability for cases in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). Secondly, the government has indicated that it will attempt to provide a legislative solution for funded cases outside the CAT, as ‘the DMCC Bill is not the place to address this.’ Kinley suggests that this can be considered a mixed result for the litigation funding industry. On the positive side, if the DMCC bill is brought into law then it will solve the enforceability issue for LFAs in the CAT, whilst also having a ‘retrospective effect.’ However, even though there are signs that the government will look for another legislative venue to provide a solution for non-CAT cases, ‘it is likely to be slower in coming to fruition than that proposed for funded opt-out cases in the CAT.’
Commercial Deals

The Funders’ Perspective on Criteria for Case Selection

For lawyers or claimants who have no prior experience in working with litigation funders, it can often seem an opaque process through which funders arrive at a ‘yes’ or ‘no’ decision when choosing whether to fund a case. As a result, it is incredibly useful to understand the funder’s perspective, and through that lens, understand which funders to approach. An article in Concurrences by Thierry de Bovis, director at Equity & Claims Lux, provides an overview of the latest developments in litigation funding and offers useful insights into the factors which funders consider when selecting the most attractive cases for investment. de Bovis begins by exploring the ‘rather undefined concept’ of the term ‘litigation funder’, before examining the different types of litigation finance, from single case funding and the monetization of claims, to law firm funding and special court funding. The article then provides a helpful overview of the main ‘funding criteria’ used by investors, outlining nine separate factors which are often considered by funders during case evaluation and selection. de Bovis identifies the following nine criteria:
  • Matter and financial thresholds
  • Book-building strategy and the passing-on defence
  • The right moment to fund a dispute
  • Dispute Team
  • Recovery of the defendant
  • Which jurisdictions?
  • Pricing the risk
  • Mitigating the risk: Insurance
  • Legal structuring and tax 
de Bovis explains that ‘an investor in litigation finance does not fund a dispute but invests in a legal context that is made up of any criteria’, and that the relative importance of each of these factors to an individual funder ‘will typically be determined by its culture, its legal structure, and its risk appetite.’ Due to this lack of uniformity among funders, de Bovis recommends that ‘the claimant and its counsel should consider the specificity of each funder in relation to these criteria.’ The full article with in-depth explanations for each of these criteria can be found here.
Announcements Consumer

Stellium’s Anthony Johnson Launches New Website

Anthony Johnson launched a new thought leadership website based on customer feedback on December 7, 2023. “The new platform is specifically designed to cater to the needs of legal professionals and firms,” says Anthony Johnson (AJ). “We took extensive customer feedback into account while building this platform, aiming to provide a comprehensive guidance system that enhances operational efficiency, client satisfaction, and profitability.” The new website's mission is clear: to address the frustrations, wants, fears, and aspirations of legal professionals, enabling them to achieve positive business outcomes. AJ understands the importance of sound business management principles and up-to-date legal technology reporting in today's competitive landscape. Transparency fosters trust, collaboration, and innovation within the legal system. Therefore, the site emphasizes the benefits of transparent legal data practices to empower legal professionals and promote excellence in the field. The platform offers a wide array of free educational downloadables and media resources, enabling the audience to navigate the complexities of the legal industry and succeed in their endeavors. AJ is committed to providing valuable content that equips legal professionals with the knowledge and tools they need to excel. The site will continue to deliver high-quality content and empower legal professionals. Visit https://awesomeattorney.io/ to explore the available resources. To learn more about Anthony, click the link below. https://www.linkedin.com/in/awesomeattorney/ For media inquiries contact: Margaret@stellium.co
Commercial

Key Takeaways from LFJ’s Digital Event: Legal Tech and LitFin

On December 6th, 2023, Litigation Finance Journal produced its final event of the year: Legal Tech and LitFin: How Will Tech Impact Litigation Finance Globally? Tets Ishikawa moderated an insightful and pertinent discussion on the use of legal tech in the litigation finance industry. Panelists included Nick Rowles-Davies (NRD), Founder of Lexolent, Isabel Yang (IY), Founder of Arbilex, and Joshua Masia (JM), Co-Founder and CEO of Dealbridge.ai. Below are some key takeaways from the event (answers have been truncated for the purpose of this article): Legal tech is quite a broad term.  What does the legal tech landscape mean to you, and how does it fit into your business? IY: We’re in a very exciting time in legal tech. Where I sit, I primarily deal with the underlying technology being artificial intelligence (AI). The primary advances in advanced AI have primarily occurred out of language being the source data. A lot of these text-based AI advancements all hold great significance for the practice of law. At Arbilex, we are taking advantage of large language modeling (LLM) to reduce the cost of data acquisition. When we take court briefings and unstructured data and try to turn that into structured data, the cost of that process has dramatically decreased, because of Chat GPT and the latest LLMs. On the flipside, because AI has become so advanced, a lot of off-the-shelf solutions have tended towards a black box solution. So the model’s output has become a more challenging task. At Arbilex, we have always focused on building the most stable AI—so we focus on how we can explain a particular prediction to our clients. We are increasingly investing a lot of our time and human capital into building that bridge between AI and that use case. How relevant has legal tech been, and will it be, in the growth of the litigation finance sector?  JM: When we look at scaling operational processes, a lot of times we have to put our traditional computer science hat on and ask, ‘how have we historically solved these problems and what has changed in the past several years to evolve this landscape?’ A lot of the emphasis with technology has been about normalizing and standardizing how we look at these data sets. There’s a big issue when you look at this approach and what existing platforms have been doing—this is a very human business. Because of that, there’s a lot of ad hoc requests that get mixed in. So what gen-AI is doing, we’re getting to a point where you don’t have to over-structure your sales or diligence process. Maybe the first few dozen questions you’re asking of a given data set are the same, but eventually we want to be able to ask questions that are specific to this deal. So being able to call audibles and ad-hoc analysis of data sets was really hard to do before the addition of generative AI. NRD: Legal tech is becoming increasingly relevant, but the real effect and usefulness has grown over time. It makes repetitive tasks easier, and provides insights that are not always readily apparent. But in terms of the specific use of AI to triage outcoming matters, we identify matters in different areas—is this something we simply aren’t going to assess, will it be sent back for further information, does it fit the bucket of something we would fund per our original mandate, or does it go on the platform for the purpose of others to look at and invest in that particular matter. AI is having an increasing impact and is being used with more regularity by litigation funders who are funding they can increase efficiency and get to a ‘yes’ much more quickly. A lot of lawyers would say, this is fascinating, but ultimately this is a human industry. Every circumstance will be different, because they will come down to the behaviors of human beings in that time. Is there a way that AI can capture behavioral dynamics? IY: In general, we need to have realistic expectations of AI. That comes from, what humans are uniquely good at are not necessarily the things that AI is good at. AI is really good at pattern-spotting. Meaning, if I train the model to look for recurring features of particular cases—say, specific judges in specific jurisdictions, when coming up against a specific type of argument or case—then AI in general has a very good ability to assign the weighting to a particular attribute in a way that humans instinctively can come to the same place, you can’t really quantify the impact or magnitude of a specific attribute. The other thing that we need to be realistic about, is that cases are decided not just on pattern, but on case-specific fact attributes (credibility of a witness, availability of key evidence). If you train AI to look for things that are so specific to one case, you end up overfitting the model, meaning your AI is so good at looking for one specific variable, that it loses it general predictive power over a large pool of cases. What I would caution attorneys, is use AI to get a second opinion on things you believe are a pattern. In arbitration, attorneys might use AI on tribunal matters—tribunal composition. AI models are way better at honing in on patterns—but things like ‘do we want to produce this witness vs. another witness,’ that is not something we should expect AI to predict. For the full panel discussion, please click here.
Past Event

Legal Tech & Litfin: How will tech impact Litigation Finance globally?

Watch this expert panel discussion to understand the growing role of technology in the litigation finance sector. Gain valuable insights into how AI, machine learning, and other advancements are reshaping key aspects of the industry, from origination to risk management. Originally presented in December 2023, this discussion remains highly relevant as technology continues to reshape the litigation finance landscape. Key takeaways include:
  • How is technology driving growth and efficiency in litigation finance? Explore the key advancements and their impact on the industry.
  • Discover how firms are using technology to enhance case origination, underwriting, CRM, and risk management strategies.
  • Examine how firms are measuring the value of technology investments and what their expectations are for ROI.
  • Understand the challenges firms face in implementing new technologies and integrating them with existing systems.
  • Explore emerging trends and predictions for the future of technology in litigation finance.
Listen to Replay
Commercial Deals

Omni Bridgeway’s Loewith Discusses Canadian Litigation Finance Market

Whilst the North American litigation finance market is dominated by the huge volume of cases in need of funding in the US, the industry’s leading funders are keen to exploit the potential of a Canadian market that is ripe for growth. An article by Law360 Canada provides insight into the country’s litigation funding market through an interview with Naomi Loewith, director of strategic partnerships - Canada, at Omni Bridgeway. Loewith explains that whilst third-party funding is still in its early developmental years in Canada, “the courts are comfortable with it and sophisticated lawyers know about it.” Reflecting on her own career move into the world of litigation finance, Loewith highlights that she relishes “the idea of defining people’s expectations about helping establish the industry, helping clients realize why it’s so attractive and important to them.” Discussing the value that Omni Bridgeway can bring to clients through its team of experienced litigators and specialists, Loewith notes that funders can provide clients with both “capital and assistance if they want it.” Looking at the future of litigation funding in Canada, Loewith states that “another trend we’re likely to see is law firms working with litigation finances to enable them to offer more creative fee arrangements to their clients.” Comparing the developing market with the United States, Loewith says that “many more top tier firms are comfortable acting on a partial success fee basis,” and expects to see that trend reflected in Canada moving forward.