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

As COVID, politics, and financial uncertainty continue into a new year, savvy predictions are the order of the day. With that in mind, CEO of Validity Finance, Ralph Sutton, shares his predictions for third-party legal funding in the coming year.

In Australia, Litigation Finance may have found a new niche—Family Court. Some would say that the Sydney registry of Australia’s Family Court is already highly adversarial. The court is known for wealthy divorcing couples playing out their acrimony in a public setting. Legal teams often seem to encourage this.

The largest divorce settlement in history is still unsettled. While the ex-wife of Russian billionaire Farkhad Akhmedov was awarded over $600 million in the divorce, she has received next to nothing from her ex-husband. To combat this, she enlisted help from Burford Capital, a publicly-traded legal funder.

It cannot be denied that as acceptance of Litigation Finance increases, class actions increase in number. This is viewed by most as a positive, as it demonstrates that the practice is affording access to the legal system. Increasingly, class actions involving pension fund-related investment losses are cropping up across the US and Europe.

As anticipated, Brexit has led to uncertainty—even chaos in some industries. In the legal landscape, Ireland is in a perfect position to capitalize on its status as an EU member state. Ireland’s legal system and laws are largely similar to those of Britain, which allows it to offer similar legal remedies with the same basic enforcement.

Litigation Finance has exploded in popularity over the last decade. This was caused by a number of factors, and cemented by the impact of COVID. Litigation Finance is now a powerful industry with major financial strength behind it. But it hasn’t yet reached every corner of the globe. Could India be the next frontier?

Sarah Tsou is an investment manager with funding leader Omni Bridgeway, where she specializes in patent litigation. In IP Watchdog’s recent podcast, Tsou explains the modus operandi most commonly used to defend against patent suits. Well-monied defendants can drag out even a meritorious patent suit for years—depleting the resources of patent owners.

This year has been unique in terms of obstacles, uncertainty, and hardship. Record layoffs and business closures have caused disruption around the globe, and the legal world is beset by delays juxtaposed with a tidal wave of new litigation. Thankfully, it has also brought about a rise in the use of litigation funding.

India is currently one of the world’s top five economies. That’s good news. But like most top economies, Covid is causing disruption and discord. The pandemic may also lead to a flurry of new litigation as it has in much of the developed world. Will India be joining the likes of Germany, Australia, UK, Singapore, and others in their acceptance of litigation funding?

A recent announcement from Anderson Mori & Tomotsune indicates the formation of a “foreign law joint enterprise.” In essence, the firm is taking on partners who are registered lawyers from the US, UK, and Mainland China. All are fluent in Japanese.

Litigation Finance is increasing in use and acceptance as an innovative, ethical option when money is scarce. According to the 2020 Legal Finance Report, use of third-party litigation funding is up 105% since 2017.

In these trying and potentially volatile economic times, CFOs may have every reason to worry. They also have reason to innovate, adapt, and find creative solutions to maintaining balance sheets.

Massive new oversight is needed to reign in the litigation funding industry—that’s the conclusion according to a report from the parliamentary joint committee on corporations and financial services. An array of recommendations has been suggested, though it did not include Frydenburg’s most severe requirements.

Could anyone have predicted these insane Omni Bridgeway returns? Omni Bridgeway isn’t making a profit currently. For the previous five years, revenue has trended downward at a rate of more than 30% per year.

A recent panel, the Global Legal Groups Class Action Symposium, looked at US and EU collective litigation, examining trends. Of particular interest are new global class action laws and how inter-jurisdictional issues will be handled in the future.

Nick Rowles-Davies doesn’t mind being called an “ambulance chaser.” Maybe that’s because after chasing down an ambulance, his Sydney-based Litigation Finance firm, LCM, helps the injured parties seek justice. That’s the nature of litigation funding, and it’s working for a lot of people.

An impressive $57 million settlement was distributed among members of the Williamtown Contamination Class Action earlier this week. This comes as part of a settlement from February of last year, in a case involving PFAS contamination of homes, farms, and other businesses.

Recently, two portfolio managers at Burford Capital shared their thoughts on 2020’s 4th quarter, the continued impact of COVID, collections, and challenges in cash management. Nicholas Cooper and Patrick Wackerly explain year-end financing and more.

There’s an economic crisis afoot, which means managing costs and workflow is more vital than ever. Instead of telling in-house legal teams to ‘do more with less’, savvy businesses are investing in their legal departments. This allows them to better manage workflow, reduce spending, and optimize the company’s bottom line.

Week two of the IP Dealmaker’s Forum included a variety of panels and events revolving around three main points of discussion. These included diligence, licensing, and venue. The forum also expounded on the importance of litigation funding in an array of IP matters.

The case of Mastercard Inc et al v Merricks has captured considerable attention. Lawyers, funders, claimants in cases that have been stayed pending this decision—and at least 46 million claimants all awaited the Supreme Court’s ruling.

This past Monday, Cayman Islands Parliament passed the Private Funding of Legal Services Bill 2020. The bill provides a legal framework for conditional legal fees akin to what happens in the United Kingdom, as well as US-style contingency fees and litigation funding.

An ILO (Initial Litigation Offering) was recently launched on the Avalanche blockchain. This is, in essence, a token that provides investors with a percentage of payouts from various funded lawsuits. The December 14th announcement detailed the perks of litigation funding as an investment.

Litigation Finance is already booming in the United States, UK, Australia, and elsewhere. India has yet to really take advantage of the practice. But that may be about to change.

A class action involving IPO Wealth is proceeding in a Victoria Federal Court. The case was filed against Vasco Trustees and names associated company DH Flinders. Law firm Slater and Gordon is running the class action.

Policyholders with Southern Response got a rare bit of good news as their class action against the insurer was launched. New Zealand’s top litigation funder, LPF, will provide financial support for the action. Those homeowners who were insured by Southern Response and made a claim after their home was damaged in the earthquake are eligible for inclusion—if their settlement was lower than it should have been.