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Announcements Commercial

Bentham IMF Hires Recognized International Arbitration Expert in Canada

Dispute financing company Bentham IMF has hired well-known international arbitration expert Annie Lespérance, FCIArb, as Legal Counsel in its Montreal office as it continues to expand both its arbitration bench strength, and its presence in a growing Quebec market. Annie is the eighth lawyer to join the Canadian team, and will assist in assessing commercial litigation and arbitration matters, where clients seek funding to manage the cost or risk of pursuing a claim.


Prior to joining Bentham, Annie practised as a lawyer at Cabinet Yves Fortier (2012-2019) and the Permanent Court of Arbitration (2011-2012), where she acted as Secretary to Arbitral Tribunals in international commercial, investor-State and sports arbitration disputes under a wide range of procedural rules (ICC, ICSID, LCIA, UNCITRAL, PCA, ICDR, SIAC, HKIAC, CAS, SDRCC) and governing laws. Annie has been appointed as an arbitrator and is a member of various arbitration rosters, including NAFTA’s Chapter 19 Roster of Panelists and ICDR Canada’s panel of arbitrators. She has also been recognized as a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (FCIArb) based in London, UK.

Annie’s hire reflects the growth in arbitration funding, as well as the increasing demand for litigation funding across Canada.  Annie will leverage her unique experience acting as arbitral secretary for one of the world’s preeminent arbitrators to conduct due diligence on potential investments, and work with lawyers and clients to manage funded matters. She adds considerable depth to Bentham IMF’s global arbitration team, which also recently welcomed Dana MacGrath, the president of Arbitral Women and a leading international arbitration lawyer who was previously a partner at Sidley Austin in New York. Bentham’s team includes arbitration experts in Canada, the US, the UK, Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia.

“Litigation funders have become key players in the arbitration and commercial litigation landscape. I am absolutely delighted to join the world’s oldest and most experienced dispute financing company and a team of sophisticated lawyers,” says Annie.

Annie adds to a growing team in Montreal that includes Montreal office leader and former McCarthy Tétrault LLP partner Pierre-Jérôme Bouchard, and senior advisor George Hendy, a veteran Montreal litigator who practised for over 45 years at Ogilvy Renault (now Norton Rose Fulbright Canada), Phillips & Vineberg (now Davies, Ward, Philipps and Vineberg LLP) and Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt.

“Annie’s arrival truly complements our team in Montreal. She brings a different and unique experience and will be a great asset for claimants not only in the international arbitration space, including both commercial and investor-state disputes, but also in all types of cases,” says Pierre-Jérôme.

Annie earned her law degree from Université de Montréal and her LL.M. cum laude, from Leiden University. Annie was called to the Quebec Bar in 2010 and to the Paris Bar in 2011. She is fluent in French, English and Spanish.

Bentham IMF is delighted to welcome Annie to the team. She can be reached atalesperance@benthamimf.ca or +1-514-795-8787.

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Announcements Commercial Legal Innovation

Sentry Expands Free Funding Market Search for Litigators

By John Freund |

Sentry Funding’s free tool enabling litigators to instantly search the funding market on behalf of clients has been expanded.

Sentry’s free ‘decision in principle’ feature enables lawyers to evidence to clients that they have conducted a broad market search, even if funding is not ultimately taken out.

Having deployed £125m in funding across a range of case types, Sentry now has access to an even broader funding marketplace, covering 34 global jurisdictions. Finance is provided by 13 funders, five of which are members of the Association of Litigation Funders.

With the recent addition of Sentry’s first US-based funder, the US offering will now be expanding over the next few months. 

A faster process

Sentry has deployed the latest technology to make the search for funding even easier. 

  • The intuitive application process now only asks questions relevant to previous answers, saving lawyers time.
  • The commercial marketplace has been redeveloped with 63 new data points added to the funder criteria matrix - improving the accuracy of case / funder matching
  • Sentry has also begun building out its AI capabilities, starting with an automated auditing tool for live case progression audits. 

Tom Webster, chief executive officer at Sentry Funding, said:

‘By broadening our reach and speeding up the process, we’re making it even easier for lawyers to raise funding. We’re also giving litigators an easy way to show clients they have fully researched the market, rather than just approaching one or two funders. 

‘The service is free to use, so even if clients decide they do not ultimately want funding or if none is available for that case, for the lawyer, it makes sense to use our “decision in principle” feature, so they can put evidence on file that they did check the market.’

Sentry Funding is an SaaS (software as a service) technology provider that gives solicitors access to a diverse marketplace of litigation funders. It works with solicitors, funders and third-party providers to ensure claimants are getting the most efficient service for their funding needs. 

The Sentry Portal also acts as a case management system that runs a transparent digital case file for solicitors, funders, after-the-event insurance providers, barristers, cost lawyers and other relevant third parties.

Announcements Commercial

NorthWall Capital Hits €2.9 B AUM on Private Credit Momentum

By John Freund |

NorthWall Capital has rocketed past €2.9 billion in assets under management after pulling in an additional €1.6 billion of institutional capital in 2025 alone. The London-based alternative credit manager says the surge reflects allocators’ intensifying hunt for scaled, multi-strategy platforms as Europe’s banks retrench and borrowers seek bespoke sources of credit.

A press release from NorthWall Capital details first-close totals across four distinct strategies. The flagship Credit Opportunities fund secured €731 million—already eclipsing its prior vintage—while the newly launched Senior Lending vehicle raised $503 million, translating to roughly $750 million of deployable firepower once leverage is applied. Asset-Backed Opportunities collected €252 million for collateral-rich loans in sectors underserved by traditional lenders, and the specialist Legal Assets platform locked down $169 million to extend the firm’s law-firm lending programme.

Founder and CIO Fabian Chrobog said the fundraising validates “the consistency of our approach” and NorthWall’s ability to craft solutions that resonate with investors and counterparties alike. With headcount slated to hit 40 by year-end, the firm plans to lean further into complex, situational credit born of bank deleveraging, regulatory shifts and sponsors’ need for certainty of execution.

Announcements Commercial People Moves

Victory Park Expands Legal Credit Leadership with Maleson Promotion

By John Freund |

Victory Park Capital (VPC), a global alternative asset manager specializing in private credit, has announced that Justin Maleson will expand his role to Managing Director, co-heading the firm’s legal credit investment strategy. The promotion underscores VPC’s ongoing investment in its legal finance capabilities and follows Maleson’s initial appointment in 2024 as Assistant General Counsel.

An announcement from Victory Park Capital details Maleson’s new responsibilities, which include sourcing, analyzing, and managing investments across legal assets, while maintaining oversight of the firm’s legal operations. He joins Chad Clamage in co-leading the strategy, working alongside team members Hugo Lestiboudois and Andrew Pascal, under the continued oversight of VPC CEO and founder Richard Levy.

Maleson brings a strong background in litigation finance and commercial law to the position. Before joining VPC, he served as a director at Longford Capital, where he specialized in originating and managing litigation funding transactions. His earlier tenure as a litigation partner at Jenner & Block further deepened his exposure to complex legal matters, equipping him with the expertise needed to navigate the nuanced legal credit space.

VPC’s legal credit team emphasizes an asset-backed lending model, prioritizing downside protection and predictable income streams. The firm aims to capitalize on inefficiencies within the legal funding market by leveraging its internal expertise and broad network of relationships. With Maleson’s appointment, VPC signals its intent to further scale its legal credit strategy, positioning itself as a key player in the evolving legal finance sector.

Maleson’s elevation comes at a time of increasing sophistication in litigation finance, where experienced legal minds are playing a pivotal role in portfolio construction and risk management. As VPC bolsters its leadership, the move may foreshadow further institutionalization of legal asset investing and heightened competition in a maturing market segment.