Jonathan Mitchell of Mitchell Law PLLC has filed 21 class actions against public sector unions over the past two years. According to a recent court filing in which Mitchell disclosed the source of his funding, Chicago-based Juris Capital has been financing his class action claims.
With over 600 class actions filed in Australia since the regime was first allowed 27 years ago, litigation funders are finding the class action sector to be a wellspring of potential investment. Yet the rise and subsequent fall of common fund orders underscores the backlash that is growing against the sector.
In a bid to reduce the number of class actions in Australia, the Aussie Supreme Court has struck down common fund orders, which allow courts to order that all members of a class pay a portion of their settlement or payout to the litigation funder, regardless of whether they signed an agreement with that funder. The ruling changes the game for class action funding in Australia.
Arowana, the New Zealand company that established Intueri Education Group in 2010, took it public in 2014, then liquidated it in 2017, is facing a potential class action lawsuit by Adina Thorn Lawyers and funded by LPF Group. However Arowana has clearly stated that the company is confident any class action against it stands no chance of success.
Litigation funders have long been vying to get a piece of Obamacare insurance claims, which allege the federal government failed to make good on a host of payments to health insurers. Now that the Supreme Court has decided to hear several of those claims, funders have begun reaching out to insurers with more attractive terms and pricing.
Litigation funder LPF Group is funding a shareholder class action against the now-defunct insurance company CBL Corp., as well as its former directors. LPF has complained to ASIC, an Australian regulator, about rival funder IMF Bentham’s proposed action, which may end up targeting only CBL and not the former directors.
Burford Capital’s Equity Project turned one year old last month. The initiative – launched by senior managing director Aviva Will – is aimed at incentivizing female lawyers to take greater risks. The mechanism for accomplishing this is a $50MM fund that can only be used for claims where a female attorney is first-chair, plaintiffs’ lead counsel or on a plaintiffs’ steering committee, or if the claimant is represented by a female-owned law firm.
November 19, 2019—NASHVILLE— The first-ever detailed analysis of the U.S. commercial litigation finance industry places its size at $2.3 billion, leading U.S. litigation finance advisor, Westfleet Advisors, reported today in its inaugural Westfleet Advisors Litigation Finance Buyer’s Guide. Driven by data collected directly from litigation funders, the Guide represents the first reliable calculation of the size of the U.S. litigation finance industry and offers the most complete and revealing picture ever painted of the sector. This study includes data on the size, scope and focus of U.S. commercial litigation finance, as well as detailed profiles of many of the 41 litigation funders active in the space.
National Australia Bank (NAB) is facing a myriad of regulatory actions and lawsuits which is leaving company executives in a lurch. After voluntarily self-reporting potential compliance issues to regulators, the bank announced to shareholders in its annual report that it is facing mounting legal and financial pressure in the wake of revelations from the Hayne Royal Commission.
A new survey by Konexo, the alternative legal services department of Aussie law firm Eversheds Sutherland, has found that nearly 2/3 of in-house counsel surveyed report increased pressure to reduce costs, while resources continue to dwindle. Yet despite this, GCs are loathe to outsource work to external counsel, instead looking for alternatives to the traditional law firm model.
The global construction industry is one that is utilizing litigation finance to greater and greater degrees. With heavy CapEx, a high rate of legal disputes and low margins, construction firms and contractors are finding solace in third party litigation finance.
Ross Asset Management (RAM) investors are suing Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ), alleging that the bank breached its fiduciary duties to investors. The first legal hurdle has emerged, with ANZ filing a ‘strike-out’ application, asking the court to dismiss the motion entirely.
Augusta, the UK’s largest litigation funder by case volume, today announces the formation of its Consumer Claims Division, with four new hires into the business.
JERICHO, N.Y., Oct. 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Esquire Financial Holdings, Inc. (ESQ) (the “Company”), the holding company for Esquire Bank, National Association (“Esquire Bank”), today announced its operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2019.
Leading Welsh commercial law firm Acuity Law has agreed a £10 million litigation funding facility with the UK’s largest litigation funder by volume, Augusta Ventures.
A UK Court of Appeal has approved the enormous U.S.-style class action against Google in the now infamous ‘Safari workaround’ claim. 4 million claimants will be represented in an opt-out action brought by Mishcon de Reya and backed by Therium Capital Management.
IMF Bentham is funding a shareholder class action against New Zealand-based CBL Corp., claiming the company failed to disclose that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand had been investigating its solvency for several years. CBL has since entered liquidation, leaving many shareholders out in the cold.
