News and analysis dedicated to the commercial litigation funding sector including regulatory issues, case developments, funding activities, and more.

Thomson Reuters (TSX/NYSE: TRI), a global content and technology company, today announced it has acquired Safe Sign Technologies, a UK-based startup that is developing legal-specific large language models (LLMs).

“This acquisition marks another milestone on our journey to combine our trusted content and world-class domain experts with our cutting-edge technology. Based on our internal assessment, we believe Safe Sign’s models have demonstrated industry-leading performance across a number of domain-specific evaluations. We believe that coupling them with our industry-leading content and expertise will help us deliver greater quality and performance from our AI solutions,” said Joel Hron, Chief Technology Officer, Thomson Reuters. “We expect this acquisition to help accelerate our ability to provide our customers with a professional grade AI experience through the CoCounsel AI Assistant – the company’s genAI assistant – that enables professionals across industries to accelerate and streamline their workflows.”

“We believe Safe Sign Technologies has been at the cutting edge of legal AI research since 2022, achieving significant progress in its goal to create the world’s best proprietary legal LLM. Safe Sign’s world-leading team—drawn from Cambridge, DeepMind, Harvard and MIT—is pleased to join with Thomson Reuters to become a major scientific and industrial disrupter in legal AI,” stated the Safe Sign Technologies leadership team, Alexander Kardos-Nyheim and Dr. Jonathan Schwarz.

Alexander Kardos-Nyheim, founder and CEO, founded Safe Sign Technologies in February 2022. He was joined by leading Cambridge Law and AI professors and researchers. Kardos-Nyheim’s team expanded, most notably with the arrival in late 2023 of Dr. Jonathan R. Schwarz, who became the company’s co-founder and chief scientist. Schwarz brought with him world-leading AI expertise, drove the company’s LLM strategy and enabled the company to achieve world-class legal LLM performance. The Safe Sign Technologies team will report directly to Hron and will be working closely with the Thomson Reuters Labs team. To learn more about Safe Sign Technologies and its team, visit the Safe Sign Technologies website.

Thomson ReutersThomson Reuters (TSX/NYSE: TRI) (“TR”) informs the way forward by bringing together the trusted content and technology that people and organizations need to make the right decisions. The company serves professionals across legal, tax, accounting, compliance, government, and media. Its products combine highly specialized software and insights to empower professionals with the data, intelligence, and solutions needed to make informed decisions, and to help institutions in their pursuit of justice, truth, and transparency. Reuters, part of Thomson Reuters, is a world-leading provider of trusted journalism and news. For more information, visit tr.com.

A specialist Litigation Funder which has offices in Manchester, Dublin and The Netherlands, has appointed an internationally renowned finance executive as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO).

Finance veteran, Robin Grant, has joined Nera Capital bringing over 25 years’ experience in dealing with various asset classes and investment strategies. 

As a long-standing chartered accountant, Mr Grant explained that he has gained extensive UK and international experience with large firms through to start-ups and is now delighted to join the team at Nera Capital.

“The company has always been successful, and at the moment it is on a steep growth curve which makes Nera Capital increasingly attractive to additional institutional investors,” he said. 

“The firm has an exceptional business model where pursuit of justice for the benefit of claimants is at the heart of everything it does while also generating superior risk adjusted returns for our investors. It’s a win-win for everyone except the corporate wrongdoers.

“I’m very pleased to be at Nera and aim to make a positive contribution as part of the management team.”

Mr Grant added that Nera Capital’s success is due to the team working quickly to undertake due diligence, understand the return proposition and do the work needed to get claim strategies into an investable position.

“Once we get there, we move very quickly to deploy funds and aggressively manage the litigation process to get the claims in a position where we can start settling them,” he added.

“The professionalism of the team is unrivalled; this is a team with a strong proven track record.

“They’ve done it for years, they’re all from high-quality institutional, backgrounds and they’re all really passionate about what they do, it’s a very exciting time for the team.”

Reflecting on his own career, Robin explained: “My journey after I left university began with three hard years training to be a chartered accountant with BDO in London.

“It’s an exciting sector to be involved in with lots of challenges and its these that make it enjoyable.” With a craving to earn international finance experience after his qualification in London, Mr Grant boarded a plane to Bermuda and spent the next five years gaining exposure to banking, captive insurance and hedge fund sectors, having stints with PwC and Lombard Odier.   

Looking back on his time, he explained: “I ended up living in Bermuda for five years and the Cayman Islands for two years before returning to London.

“Once back in the UK I gained further experience with large institutions, I was CFO of GLG Partners’ Fund of Funds division (now part of Man Group PLC) and boutique firms, such as Tabula Investment Management Ltd (now part of Janus Henderson), RS Platou Asset Management (now part of Clarksons PLC) and Quantmetrics Capital.

“These experiences are the grounding for everything I have done since then, and I’ve enjoyed taking that skillset and applying it to my role with Nera Capital.”

Speaking about Mr Grant’s appointment, Director of Nera Capital, Aisling Byrne, said the team were delighted to welcome him aboard and look forward to growing the firm together. 

She said: “This year Nera Capital has been able to expand substantially, while achieving significant milestones with multiple investments around the world and large settlements being also achieved “ 

“We are confident that Mr Grant will be able to guide our team through further growth, while we focus on investment returns and justice in the legal system.” 

About Nera Capital 

·       Established in 2011, Nera Capital is a specialist funding provider to law firms.  

·       Provides Law Firm Lend funding across diverse claim portfolios in both the Consumer and Commercial sector. 

·       Headquartered in Dublin, the firm also has offices in Manchester and Holland. 

·       Member of European Litigation Funders Association

.       www.neracapital.com

Lewis Edmonds is a Director of Fibre Group and is a seasoned financial planner with over 10 years of expertise in cross-border planning, wealth management, and alternative investments. He serves a diverse clientele across the UK, USA, Middle East, Europe, and Latin America, offering tailored solutions that include diversification, wealth creation, and risk hedging strategies. 

Lewis’s comprehensive approach ensures clients achieve their financial goals while navigating the complexities of international finance. Lewis manages the group’s portfolio of investment opportunities and fund management providers, whilst assessing new opportunities to enhance the company’s offering. 

Company Name and Description: Based in the United Kingdom, Fibre Group focuses on cross-border payments, cross-border wealth and alternative investment strategies. 

The payments side of the businesses ensures clients have access to highly competitive exchange rates through multi-currency banking solutions, and guidance to manage foreign exchange risk, which is often a significant consideration for international property transactions and cross-border wealth matters. 

Fibre Capital focuses on international wealth management and alternative investment, by providing tailored strategies that are customised to individual goals and risk preferences.

Acknowledging the limitations of conventional banking, Fibre looks beyond public markets and traditional investments to identify solutions that diversity, balance and enhance clients’ portfolios. 

Within the Litigation funding ecosystem, Fibre’s role is to introduce their active and growing client base of investors, to investment opportunities in the litigation funding space, via loan note, corporate bond, or direct investment. 

Company Website: www.fibrepayments.com — https://fibre.capital

Year Founded:  2021

Headquarters:  London

Area of Focus:  Traditional wealth management and alternative investment strategies for our active client base. 

Member Quote: “In an ever-changing economic landscape, we are actively seeking innovative investment strategies, to ensure the best outcome for our clients and opportunities in litigation financing are increasingly becoming an attractive alternative asset class, for our clients.”

DocPro Limited, a leading legal technology company, is pleased to announce the successful completion of a $500,000 pre-seed investment round from Multiway Industries. This strategic investment underscores DocPro’s commitment to streamlining and enhancing the delivery of legal services through innovative AI-powered solutions.

Advancing Legal Services

Established in 2020, DocPro Limited has been dedicated to making legal services more efficient, accessible, and cost-effective. Through its platforms, DocPro.com and DocLegal.ai, the company leverages cutting-edge artificial intelligence to simplify the creation, customization of legal documents. With over 50,000 registered users worldwide, DocPro.com has become a trusted resource for individuals and businesses seeking reliable legal documentation.

The soon-to-be-launched DocLegal.ai aims to be the most accessible and affordable legal tech solution globally, offering legal documents at prices as low as $2 per document. This initiative will make high-quality legal services readily available to professionals, businesses and individuals alike.

“Our goal is to enhance the delivery of legal services by harnessing AI to make legal processes more efficient and accessible,” said Kim Chan, Founder and CEO of DocPro Limited. “This pre-seed investment from Multiway Industries will allow us to accelerate our development efforts, expand our offerings, and improve the overall user experience.”

Strategic Growth and Product Development

The $500,000 pre-seed investment will be allocated towards advancing product development, expanding the engineering and AI teams, and implementing go-to-market strategies. DocPro’s focus extends beyond document generation, with plans to introduce a comprehensive AI legal assistant service, further enhancing its offerings in the legal tech space.

Investor Confidence

“We are excited to support DocPro in their efforts to enhance legal technology,” said Ellie Lee, Managing Director of Multiway Industries. “Their innovative use of AI not only streamlines complex legal processes but also makes legal services more accessible and efficient for businesses like ours.”

About DocPro Limited

Founded in 2020, DocPro Limited is a legal technology company dedicated to streamlining the legal industry through AI-powered solutions. As an incubatee under the Cyberport and Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks (HKSTP) incubation programs, DocPro has developed platforms like DocPro.com and DocLegal.ai to empower legal professionals and businesses to create and manage legal documents efficiently and accurately. For more information, visit DocPro.com and DocLegal.ai .

About Multiway Industries

Established in 1978, Multiway Industries is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of extension cords, power adaptors, surge protectors, energy-saving programs, and USB chargers. Committed to supporting innovative technology companies, Multiway Industries partners with visionary entrepreneurs to bring transformative solutions to market, making services more accessible and efficient for businesses worldwide.

On Thursday August 15th, LFJ hosted a Virtual Town Hall titled ‘PACCAR Revisited.’ The live event revisited the PACCAR decision one year later and explored what the future holds for legal funding in the UK and beyond.

Panelists included Ben Knowles (BK), Chair International Arbitration at Clyde & Co LLP, Robert Marven (RM), Barrister at 4 New Square, Nicholas Marler (NM), Head of Technical Underwriting at Litica Ltd, and Neil Purslow (NP), Founder and Chief Investment Officer, Therium Capital Management Limited. The panel discussion was moderated by Tets Ishikawa, Managing Director of LionFish Litigation Finance Limited.

Below are some key takeaways from the event:

We don’t hear much from insurers in regard to the PACCAR issue. Nicholas, from an insurer’s perspective, what are your thoughts?

NM: The ATE insurers’ odyssey through the world of PACCAR is in some ways quite different from that of a litigation funder. At first bluff, you might think that PACCAR doesn’t have anything to do with insurers because it has to do with litigation funding agreements, and you’d never catch an insurer signing an LFA, so what’s the problem?

If you scratch a little deeper though, the reality is quite different. If you as an insurer, insure a funder, and the funder gives an adverse costs indemnity to the claimant, then all of a sudden, the insurer’s contractual fortunes are tied to the funders. If the LFA is unenforceable, then not only can the insurer not collect its contingent premium if there’s a success, but the coverage provided to the funder has vanished–this is because the LFA is unenforceable.

We actually had this exact experience play out. An opportunistic claimant sought to cut the funder out, because it felt emboldened to do so as a result of the PACCAR decision. When they were informed that doing so would void their insurance, which was to their benefit, they magically found the goodwill necessary to resolve things with their funder and an amicable solution was quickly found.

You’ve touched on enforceability. Given how central that is to the heart of the PACCAR issue, Robert, can you share some insights and perspectives on this corse issue?

RM: There are essentially two views on the concept of enforceability. One is that it essentially says there isn’t anything wrong with the contract, just that it can’t be enforced. There is another view which says that the contract is unenforceable, that it is an illegal contract. I don’t agree with that. It seems this is one of the paradoxes of PACCAR, it seems to have rendered unenforceable funding agreements that were perfectly legal under common law.

A lack of enforceability is important to understand as a two-way street. It means the funder cannot enforce, and it also means the claimant cannot enforce. And this is the key to understanding why things have been put right in cases that are still ongoing. A claimant who says to a funder ‘I don’t have to pay you anymore,’ well, a funder could say to the same token, ‘I don’t have to fund your case anymore.’ And we have seen cases that have been over or very nearly over, where the claimants think they don’t need the funder anymore and saying ‘thank you very much, I needed the funding but I don’t have to pay you.’ Or ‘I did pay you, but I want the money back.’

This is where it’s important to remember that enforceability is a two-way street. If all sides want to continue to carry on, then everyone has an incentive in fixing the problem. It’s only where those interests converge that seem to have led to a significant litigation dispute.

Ben, from your perspective, how do you think this affects the UKs standing as a legal jurisdiction?

BK: PACCAR created a mess, and it was an expensive mess, irrespective of where we’re going to end up. There’s been a lot of lawyer’s time figuring out what PACCAR means and where we’re going to go. The PACCAR fix, as I call it, would have cleared things up to some extend. But the absence of that means some of this uncertainty will continue. And uncertainty means additional costs.

We have these various appeals on the funding agreements out there at the moment. I would expect that in some of these cases, there will be appeals that go to the Court of Appeals, and potentially, all the way up to the Supreme Court. My feeling is, when there’s a case to be funded, lawyers will find a way to get that case funded. Although I’d imagine there will be a risk premium attached to that funding, not least because everybody will be getting their funding agreements checked, double-checked and triple-checked. And you may have lawyers who disagree on what’s permissible, and that leads to additional costs at the start of the case.

This session is about PACCAR, but we’d be remiss not to talk about the CJC, given how the two issues merge. Neil, you’re on the consultation group for the CJC review. Are there any insights you’re able to share?

NP: There’s now a working party reporting up to the CJC. We’re expecting an interim report from that working party to come out in late summer or early autumn, and there will be a consultation, and then the final report in the middle of next year. So we’ve put on quite a tight timeline.

From an industry perspective, this review is welcome, unless you’re opposed to the idea of talking about regulation, which I don’t think the industry is. This is a sensible organizational group that is considering these points in a proper and thoughtful way. I would encourage people to get behind the work that ILFA and ALFA are doing here, and I’d also encourage funders to get involved in the consultation phase as well. It’s very important that the CJC are thinking about these points with a full and proper understanding of how funding actually works, so they can understand the impact.

I think it’s also important that the industry makes sure that the review takes place in a proper context, and by ‘proper context’ I mean that there is an understanding that funding does have benefits. So the review should look at how good responsible funding can be encouraged and those benefits can be maximized, rather than looking at funding as a suspicious thing that needs to be controlled and is just a risk. I think there is a very positive message for funding that needs to be emphasized, and I think the CJC needs to look at it through this positive lens, and I’m confident that they will.

To view the entire digital event, click here.

Dan is a founder of the business, but began his career at one of the UK’s largest FX brokerages. He has since built a robust network of partnerships with financial advisors and lawyers, focusing on high-net-worth clients and professionals in sports.

Dan also specialises in supporting trusts and wealth structures with cross-border payments and management of their assets, addressing challenges typically faced with by traditional banks. 

Recognising the demand from clients for interest solutions to complement the multicurrency offering, Dan also focuses on identifying new growth and investment opportunities to enhance the current portfolio and meet clients’ needs. 

Company Name and Description: Fibre Group

Based in the United Kingdom, Fibre focus on cross-border payments, cross-border wealth and alternative investment strategies. 

The payments slide of the businesses ensures clients have access to highly competitive exchange rates through multicurrency banking solutions, and guidance to manage foreign exchange risk, which is often a significant consideration for international property transactions and cross-border wealth matters. 

Fibre Capital focuses on international wealth management and alternative investment, by providing tailored strategies that are customised to individual goals and risk preferences.

Acknowledging the limitations of conventional banking, Fibre look beyond public markets and traditional investments to identify solutions that diversity, balance and enhance clients’ portfolios. 

Within the litigation funding ecosystem, Fibre’s role is to introduce their active and growing client base of investors, to investment opportunities in the litigation funding space, via loan note, corporate bond, or direct investment.

Company Website: www.fibrepayments.com — https://fibre.capital

Year Founded:  2021

Headquarters:  London

Area of Focus:  Cross-border payments, interest solutions and alternative investment strategies. 

Member Quote: “We are dedicated to delivering the highest service standards by integrating cutting-edge payment technology with innovative interest and investment strategies to achieve the best outcomes for our clients.”

The following article was contributed by Mats Geijer, Counsel Scandinavia of Deminor.

In the complex world of securities trading, disputes and violations can arise, leading to legal actions that seek to hold wrongdoers accountable and provide recourse for affected parties.

In recent years we have seen an increase in actions from investors towards listed companies, shareholders vs the so-called issuers in the region. Notable cases are OW Bunker, Danske bank in Denmark and more recently Ericsson in Sweden.

Securities litigation serves several important purposes in the financial ecosystem, namely:

1. Protecting Investors: Securities litigation helps investors in their fiduciary responsibility to seek financial compensation for losses resulting from securities fraud or misconduct. By holding wrongdoers accountable, it deters fraudulent activities and promotes market integrity.
2. Enforcing Compliance: Securities litigation enforces compliance with securities laws and regulations, ensuring that companies and individuals adhere to disclosure requirements and ethical standards in their financial dealings.
3. Promoting Transparency: Securities litigation can uncover hidden risks, misrepresentations, or conflicts of interest that may impact investors’ decisions. This transparency is essential for maintaining trust in the financial markets.
4. Enhancing Corporate Governance: Securities litigation can target corporate governance failures, such as breaches of fiduciary duty or conflicts of interest among corporate insiders. Holding company officers and directors accountable can lead to improved governance practices.

Securities litigation in Sweden can be done in various ways, through class/group actions, derivative actions, or regulatory enforcement actions (by authorities). Case law in the sphere of private enforcement is historically scarce but will now hopefully start to emerge. A historic reason is probably that Sweden as a civil law country lacks statutory rules regulating civil liability in relation to improper securities activities.

In the Ericsson case, 37 institutions are claiming roughly $200 million from the issuer in the district court of Solna, Sweden. The claimants state they have suffered investment losses since Ericsson withheld information about potential bribes paid to the terrorist organisation ISIS in Iraq, that caused the share price to fall. The claimants are all large (non-Swedish) institutional investors, and the case is funded by a third-party funder (not Deminor). The case will be tried in the first instance court in 2025.

The legal community expects to see an increase in litigation related to securities in the coming years, to paint a picture in 2021 there where was one (1) initial public offering every second day (157 in total). In 2022-23 there were only a handful of initial public offerings each year. Sweden has a disproportionate number of listed companies compared to other EU countries and it is considered a national sport to invest in the stock market. A majority of listed shares are held by local and foreign sovereign wealth funds, they seldom engage in litigation locally but often participate in international cases in the US and elsewhere. The economy is currently in a recession which has historically always led to an increase in the number of disputes.

Deminor is the only international funder with a local presence that focuses on securities litigation. On paper there are plenty of opportunities in Scandinavia, but in practical terms cases are often too “small” meaning the quantum of the potential loss the investor has suffered is not sufficient to initiate the litigation. Or which is more often the situation, the investors that do hold a significant part of the shares (the loss) are not willing to engage in litigation for various reasons. The claimants that are willing to lead the way in terms of creating the much-needed case law is the types we see in the Ericsson case, foreign institutional investors.

We could summarize the situation with a phrase coined by the advertising industry for when there was a minute of silence before the next add was supposed to run – watch this space!

The Nakiki SE announces that it has signed a Letter of Intent to acquire a portfolio of so-called casino and sports betting lawsuits with a disputed value of approximately EUR 6.3 million (plus interest of at least EUR 800,000, as well as additional costs). Nakiki SE or one of its subsidiaries intends to take over an existing portfolio of lawsuits instead of pursuing individual lawsuits as announced in the ad hoc announcement of April 17, 2024. The individual lawsuits mentioned in the ad hoc announcement of April 17, 2024, will not be financed for the time being.

According to German case law from various legally binding decisions, players have a claim for reimbursement of gambling losses, as online casinos largely operated illegally until 2021. The lawsuits to be financed by Nakiki or Legal Finance are based on this legal perspective. A ruling from the German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) and the European Court of Justice (ECJ) is still pending.

In the event of the acquisition of the portfolio and a successful outcome of the litigation, Nakiki or a financing subsidiary is entitled to up to 25% of the litigation success.

With a background in Physics, Engineering and Software, Julian Coleman has 30+ years’ experience at the COO level conceiving new products and leading the project management, system design, engineering, software development, manufacturing, compliance and delivery teams.

Company Name and Description: 10^th Mind is an e-discovery company that has been created with a major focus on innovation, not only for general e-discovery activities but in particular to assist litigation funds to overcome their specific challenges and threats  –  a special approach demanding a change of mindset.

Our name reflects our focus on innovation and is derived from the intelligence community – the Tenth Man principle. It requires that, where a group of ten analysts is working on the same data and nine of the group reach the same conclusion, it is the duty of the 10^th person, the 10^th Mind, to examine the issue on the premise that the other nine are wrong.

The ‘group think’ consensus may be right most of the time, or even mostly right all of the time, but tends to favour business as usual. The 10^th Mind is there to challenge the consensus view and proffer different solutions.

10^th Mind has defined (and addressed) four key areas:

• Costs – there is in our view an increasing understanding that costs must be reduced
• Process management and recording – not only does a very efficient process drive costs down, but it can (and must) include extensive record keeping of the entire process in order to support effective litigation
• Technology will play an ever increasing role
• Litigation Funds – a rapidly expanding market both in terms of finance available and in market sectors, funds are naturally focused on profit, a critical part of their business being case selection – and costs are a major factor here too. Funds have their own challenges, but also are having a significant impact on the wider litigation landscape.

Addressing these issues has been very interesting. As a seasoned C level executive it has been interesting to analyse and then dispense with so much convention. A business structured around what is today rather than yesterday can look very different and cost far less whilst being intrinsically more responsive and adaptable. In terms of what we can do, having no legacy structures to worry about has major benefits which transfer to the client:

• Costs are reduced.  Many expensive overheads can be dispensed with.
• We have developed our own project management and recording systems; based on PRINCE2 and facilitated by our unique software, integrated with selected new commercial products, management processes are vastly improved. Full traceable record keeping and transparency are built in and automated, essentially at zero cost.
• …and finally but crucially, 10^th Mind will work with funds on special terms:
  • if the fund is prepared to take on a case we will work on a CFA basis
  • we will also work with the fund on a CFA basis to undertake early stage investigations, in our view crucial to improving the evidence on which to base case selection and ultimately, therefore, profitability.

At 10^th Mind we are convinced that not only is such an approach necessary now, but there will be ever-present forces driving the need for continued evolution:

Costs are becoming a major issue.  Significant concern has emerged in the English litigation funding community over last year’s Paccar judgement. Omni Bridgeway’s Co-chief Information Officer, Matt Harrison, has said that some litigation funders may not survive the economic instability as “they don’t have the money available to them to invest in cases and in law firms.”  Bloomberg Law also recently noted that some litigation funds are currently facing financial difficulty.

Burford, one of the biggest litigation funds in the world and which describes itself as “the institutional quality finance firm focused on law“, undertook surveys from which they report:

“[Over half of respondents to its poll] (52%) say drastic steps are needed to better manage legal costs, such as moving away from the billable hour, limiting outside firms and more innovation from outside counsel.“

and

“Finance and legal professionals agree: the legal department’s top priority for the next 15 years is to minimize legal costs. But they are also unified in prioritizing that the legal department simultaneously find new ways to recover value.“

It is clear there is a consensus that costs, specifically cost reduction, must be considered, and in our view, litigation funds will be a driving force.

Litigation funds have a very different focus from law firms, crucially they exist to make profits and that means winning cases, which in turn places a focus on the initial assessment stage.  And, as previously observed, the sector is expanding both in terms of available funds and in scope, driving change and posing challenges for dispute litigation as a whole. 

Logically as funding takes over a larger percentage of dispute litigation, the greater the overall impact this will have on costs. Arguably as saturation approaches, such pressures can only increase.

Process management and recording is in our view now essential, not merely tracking the ingestion and processing of data from collection to court, but the recording of all the management processes which defined the data management: who did what, when and why, recorded in forensic detail. This not only, if done well, improves business processes but it evidences them should legal challenges arise. Hence this data must be ‘forensics ready’.

Technology can and will help. But it must be the right technology which assists the first two objectives, ie improving practises whilst reducing costs. Having found critical gaps in commercial offerings, we have worked on our own solution.

Website: www.10thMind.com

Founded: 2023

Headquarters: UK (London)

Member Quote: We feel it crucial that providers must always question the legacy thinking and structures that entrench lack of efficiency, accuracy, and high costs.  By applying the 10^th Mind principle, we are providing services in a new way: shared risk, formal (and unique) project management and software, along with specialised services specifically to assist funds combine to make us, to our knowledge, unique in the e-discovery sector.

If you would like to find out more as to how we can assist you and your clients, we would be delighted to meet you. Please contact us through our website (www.10thmind.com) or email our COO directly at julian.coleman@10thmind.com.

Darrow, the leading legal intelligence platform, today announced the launch of Darrow’s PlaintiffLink platform for mass arbitration.  With tens of thousands of plaintiffs already uniquely vetted on PlaintiffLink, the platform offers unparalleled quality of service for law firms in the pursuit of justice. 

PlaintiffLink is a revolutionary plaintiff-connecting tool for law firms, now built to support the complexity of mass arbitration cases. PlaintiffLink enables attorneys to plan, review, and approve potential clients through a centralized portal. It allows attorneys to connect with the large volumes of clients needed for mass arbitration. Using the platform, attorneys can gain data driven insights that power effective filing strategies and streamlined case management, backed by Darrow’s top-tier legal consultancy. 

“PlaintiffLink provides a cutting-edge solution to the risks and costs associated with mass arbitrations, and makes it easier for attorneys to promptly connect with the tens of thousands of clients needed for these types of cases,” said Evyatar Ben Artzi, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Darrow. “We’re committed to delivering technology that helps victims connect with the best law firms to ensure justice is served, even in the most complex matters that require expert attention.”

PlaintiffLink addresses the biggest barrier for attorneys considering mass arbitration cases: connecting with a large volume of qualified plaintiffs and managing them seamlessly. Through a centralized portal, attorneys can now leverage PlaintiffLink to connect with tens of thousands of thoroughly vetted, qualified plaintiffs needed for arbitrations. The service operates on a unique contingency model, shifting financial risk away from attorneys.

“We’ve built a dedicated solution to enable visibility into client cohorts in a single matter  so that attorneys can effectively file and manage cases,” said Gila Hayat, Co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer of Darrow.

PlaintiffLink enables lawyers to swiftly review through thousands of individual clients. Users can drill down into specific claim cohorts, download raw CSV data files containing all details about each claim, and review insight reports to get a more visual and statistical analysis of the case. PlaintiffLink also employs a comprehensive review process, with two tiers of expert vetting, to streamline client acquisition and reduce invalid claims. 

Darrow is committed to delivering products that drive firm growth and profits per partner, and it is planning additional releases throughout 2024 to support its users.

For more information, visit: https://darrow.ai 

About Darrow

Founded in 2020, Darrow is a legal tech company on a mission to fuel law firm growth and deliver justice for victims. Darrow’s AI-powered justice intelligence platform leverages generative AI and world-class legal experts and technologists to uncover egregious violations across legal domains spanning privacy and data breach, consumer protection, securities and financial fraud, environment, and employment. Darrow is based out of New York City and Tel Aviv.

Michael Klaschka is a Managing Principal and head of the Financial Institutions team based in EPIC’s Jersey City office.  He has over 32 years of industry experience and is a highly respected and skilled negotiator in the professional liability marketplace. 

Mike has extensive experience working with financial institution, investment management, litigation finance, real estate, venture capital, private equity and complex risks with strong technical knowledge of D&O, E&O, Cyber, Fidelity, Fiduciary, Media and Employment Practices Liability. 

Mike joined EPIC in August 2016.  Prior to joining EPIC, Mike was the national leader of Integro’s Management Risk Practice where he spent 11 years.  Prior to Integro, Mike spent 10 years at Marsh & McLennan where he held various positions including head of their E&O Center of Excellence Group based in NY as well as the west coast FINPRO placement leader for their financial institution, technology and commercial accounts group based in San Francisco.  Mike earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Drew University in 1991, and majored in Economics with a minor in Political Science.

Company Name and Description:  EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants

We are a unique and innovative retail risk management and employee benefits insurance brokerage and consulting firm, founded in San Francisco, California in 2007 with offices and leadership across the country.

EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants has a depth of industry expertise across key lines of insurance, including risk management, property and casualty, employee benefits, unique specialty program insurance and private client services.

Company Website: https://www.epicbrokers.com/

Year Founded: 2007

Headquarters: San Francisco, CA

Area of Focus: Property & Casualty Insurance with expertise in Directors’ & Officers’, Errors & Omissions, Employment Practices, Fund, and Cyber Liability.

Member Quote: Procuring insurance for litigation finance companies can be a challenge as many insurers view the industry as driving up their costs.  Several even prohibited their underwriters from offering terms.  In addition, litigation finance companies have unique exposures that are not addressed in “off the shelf” products offered by insurers.  At EPIC, we have the knowledge and experience as well as the relationships with key insurers that gives us the ability to negotiate and place coverage tailored to each client.

Nakiki SE announces that its subsidiary Legal Finance SE has signed a Letter of Intent for the financing of a so-called corona mask lawsuit with a value in dispute of up to EUR 34 million including costs and interest.

The company that concluded a contract with the Federal Republic of Germany for the supply of Covid masks in 2020 has not been paid and is suing for payment. The case is before the Court of First Instance.

Depending on the outcome of the litigation, the letter of intent provides for a graduated participation of Nakiki SE or its subsidiary in the outcome of the litigation of 15 – 35%.

This is not the lawsuit mentioned in the ad hoc announcement of 9 May 2024, which is still under review, but a different, independent lawsuit.

In a press release from Clarion, the Leeds-based law firm announced the promotion of a partner in its Costs and Litigation Funding Team.

Stephanie Kaye joined Clarion as a Paralegal in 2013 and has since become well regarded for both her networking skills and expertise. Named as a ‘Rising Star’ by Chambers and Partners in 2020, Stephanie has gone on to be recognised as a ‘Leading Individual’ in the rankings for the past three years.

The team has been ranked as Band 1 for legal costs services by Chambers and Partners for the past five years, and Stephanie’s strong national reputation has enabled her to play a key role in the development and growth of the team.

The Costs and Litigation Funding team advise on a range of matters, specialising in Court of Protection, Cost Management and Litigation Costs, with a very strong UK reputation and growing expertise in high value international costs work. Andrew McAulay, who heads up the team, has been recognised as a leading individual by Chambers for the past five years.

As well as leading the Court of Protection costs service, Stephanie has helped create and cultivate the culture at Clarion. She’s an expert mentor and her role managing junior talent through their apprenticeships and leading on diversity and inclusion initiatives has been invaluable for the firm.

Speaking on the promotion, Roger Hutton, Joint Managing Partner at Clarion, said: “Stephanie has gone from strength to strength, since joining Clarion 11 years ago. It’s no surprise and yet no mean feat, that Stephanie has now moved into the role of Partner – a role I know she’ll thrive in.

“It’s talented individuals like Stephanie who not only help us deliver our national growth strategy, but they are also instrumental in attracting the best talent across the region.”

“The Costs and Litigation Funding team has worked hard to become nationally recognised for the trusted support, advice and expertise it offers to its clients. Stephanie has played an instrumental role in this, and her promotion is testament to that.”

Alfonso Chan is a trial lawyer who focuses on litigating and licensing complex intellectual property cases on behalf of universities, research institutes and technology companies. His matters are primarily focused on semiconductors and electronic technology-intensive matters, as well as biomaterials and medical devices.

Alfonso represents plaintiffs and defendants in district courts nationwide and before the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals. He is also registered to practice before the U.S Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and has experience in inter partes review proceedings before the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB). His international practice includes handling matters in China, Taiwan, Japan, Korea and Europe. Alfonso served as an adjunct professor of International Comparative Law at Southern Methodist University, Dedman School of Law. Prior to practicing law, Alfonso was an officer in the United States Navy and nuclear propulsion engineer at Naval Reactors Headquarters. Alfonso received his JD from the Dedman School of Law and a Masters in Engineering from the University of Virginia.

Company Name and Description: King & Spalding helps leading companies advance complex business interests in more than 160 countries. Working across a highly integrated platform of more than 1,300 lawyers in 24 offices globally, we deliver tailored commercial solutions through world-class offerings and an uncompromising approach to quality and service.     

Company Website: kslaw.com/?locale=en

Year Founded: 1885

Headquarters: Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A.

Area of Focus: Intellectual Property Litigation, Innovation Protection 

Member Quote: “Patience and flexibility are essential to crafting a funding solution. The marketplace does not suffer cowboys gladly.”

Davide De Vido is an Italian lawyer with significant expertise in commercial and company law consultancy and disputes. In 2000, Davide started his career as an in-house counsel for a leading industrial group in the production and sale of building materials, gaining experience in complex transactions and corporate dispute resolution.

Subsequently, he assumed the same role for a leading company in the field of production and sale of eyewear, and after these two experiences, Davide founded his own law boutique.

In 2019, Davide entered in the litigation funding industry and founded FiDeAL®

Company Name and Description: FiDeAL® is a full consultancy company of litigation finance (funding and insurance) solutions that works across Europe with a particular focus on the Italian legal market.

We assist those seeking financial solutions to pursue single cases, and also help create portfolio claims. We collaborate with law firms, associations, other NG organizations, companies and litigation funds or investors to structure complex projects.

Last June, through collaboration with expert and university professors, FiDeAL has established its environmental, climatic, and ESG law department to offer the highest level of expertise in preparing, structuring, and conducting in-depth legal and economic analyses of projects, making the funding process more efficient and effective.

Company Website: www.fideal.it

Year Founded:  2019

Headquarters:  31020 San Vendemiano (Treviso), Italy

Area of Focus: Advising and brokering all types of litigation finance related matters. Since June 2024, FiDeAL has been working in environmental/climate/ESG law to help protect the planet and improve people’s quality of life and business relations.

Member Quote: We dream of a world where access to justice is democratized and easily accessible globally for each individual, company or entity.

Court House Capital is delighted to welcome Heather Collins as Chief Investment Officer and member of the Investment Committee, responsible for assessing and overseeing investment opportunities for the business across Australia and New Zealand.

Heather is a veteran commercial litigator with significant experience in the litigation funding sector, commercial legal practice and in-house corporate counsel roles spanning insolvency, banking and finance, property, construction, Corporations law, trade practices and employment law. Heather is highly regarded leader in the sector and is a former President of the Women’s Insolvency Network Association NSW branch (WINA), a Professional Member of the Australian Restructuring & Insolvency Association (ARITA) and the Turnaround Management Association Australia (TMA), and is recognised in Chambers and Partners Litigation Support (2024) and Lawdragon Global 100 Leaders in Litigation Finance (2021-2024). In her newly created role, Heather will work alongside the wider team and Chief Executive Officer Michelle Silvers who leads Court House Capital’s overall business strategy and operations. 

“We are seeing increasing demand for funding across Australia and New Zealand, and I am absolutely delighted to welcome Heather Collins as Chief Investment Officer in response to this growth. Heather brings a wealth of experience in funding and commercial litigation, and as Chief Investment Officer she will work closely with me to expand our business and oversee our investment portfolio.” Michelle Silvers, Chief Executive Officer, Court House Capital

“I’m thrilled to join the wonderful team at Court House Capital, in the newly created role of Chief Investment Officer. I have tremendous respect for Michelle and the Court House Capital team and look forward to bringing my extensive legal and funding experience to support our funded claimants and the stellar law firms we work with.” Heather Collins, Chief Investment Officer, Court House Capital

ABOUT COURT HOUSE CAPITAL

Court House Capital is a leading litigation funder focused on cases in Australia and New Zealand. Led by industry founders, with Australian based capital, the team is renowned for expertise, agility and collaboration. courthousecapital.com.au

Rebecca Berrebi is the CEO and Founder of Avenue 33, LLC, a full service, litigation finance consultancy that provides brokerage, strategic advisory and recruiting services. She handles all types of matters within the litigation finance industry from single case financings to law firm portfolios to insured structured credit matters.  Rebecca has worked in the litigation finance industry since 2016, and her background as a private money transactional lawyer and funder allows her to serve clients with both legal acumen and keen business insight. 

Previously, she was the Head of Corporate Affairs at a leading litigation finance fund manager where she oversaw investments and served on many boards and committees, including of Eco Oro Minerals Corp. (CSE: EOM).  Rebecca graduated from Duke University, after which she worked in the political affairs and public relations industry.  She later obtained her law degree from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, and practiced as a private equity M&A lawyer at Kirkland & Ellis LLP and at a global private equity fund. 

Company Name and Description:   Avenue 33, LLC serves litigants, funders, law firms and investors in addressing and closing the litigation finance knowledge and communications gaps in order to facilitate a more seamless, efficient and successful financing process – from outset to outcome.

Often even sophisticated parties come to a “dispute finance” matter with varying backgrounds, underlying understandings and assumptions. With information equality, alignment of interests, harmonization of expectations and clarity of process, the opportunities for maximizing positive outcomes and minimizing contention substantially increases for all stakeholders. Avenue 33 can provide guidance, strategic advice and support leading to efficient value optimization.

Company Website: www.avenue33llc.com

Year Founded:  2020

Headquarters:  Westchester, NY

Area of Focus:  Advising and brokering all types of litigation finance related matters

Member Quote: In this opaque market, visibility into trends and appetites of the players saves lawyers, clients, funds and all stakeholders time and money.  Experienced, high-quality brokers create value for individual deals as well as add credibility to the litigation finance industry generally.