It’s no secret that an increase in insolvency filings looms on the horizon. Debt restructuring, government relief programs, and belt-tightening can only take a business so far. What many businesses don’t realize is that third-party legal funding can provide financial wiggle room.
A global pandemic may have brought sweeping changes, but it hasn’t slowed the filing of new cases. Early numbers suggest that new cases are being filed at about the same levels as the previous year, or higher. ICSID reported 58 new ICSID Convention and Additional Facility arbitrations last year—the most ever. SIAC also reported a record-high number of new cases, topping 1,000 for the first time ever.
GLS Capital operates one of the world’s largest private investment firms focused on litigation finance. The GLS team is comprised of investment professionals that provide financial solutions for complex legal matters, specializing in commercial litigation, arbitration, law firm financing and patent infringement litigation, including Hatch-Waxman litigation.
About 350 farmers have already registered in the class action suit against Fonterra, but attorney David Burstyner, says that’s not enough. The founding partner of Adley Burstyner has expressed concern that some farmers might be hoping to benefit from the case without attending meetings or becoming involved.
A recent survey from Omni Bridgeway and the 2020 ACC in-house Legal Virtual Conference suggests that an inability to work litigation costs into corporates’ budgets is what is spurring the rising interest in litigation funding. A panel discussion at the conferenced dissected how legal finance can assist in-house legal teams to manage risk and monetize legal assets.
As commercial litigation grows in popularity, the issue of security for costs looms large. Recently, the Court of Appeals, via Rowe et al vs Ingenious Media Holdings plc et al set a precedent about providing a cross-undertaking in damages when seeking security for costs.
The following article is part of an ongoing column titled ‘Investor Insights.’
Brought to you by Ed Truant, founder and content manager of Slingshot Capital, ‘Investor Insights’ will provide thoughtful and engaging perspectives on all aspects of investing in litigation finance.
Londoners like Chief Executive Andrew Bailey are staunch adherents to the adage ‘Keep Calm and Carry On.’ With that in mind, onlookers were stunned at the outburst that occurred during Bailey’s recent appearance in front of the Treasury Select Committee. There to answer questions regarding Dame Elizabeth Gloster’s report, Bailey ended up lambasting the performance of the Financial Conduct Authority.
Neil Purslow didn’t intend to become an investment manager when he entered the legal world. Before long, however, he began a love affair with commercial litigation. This led to Purslow developing a broad knowledge base that included mastering the intricacies of the corporate and commercial fields.
This past Thursday, LFJ hosted a digital conference that featured insights from various institutional investors active in the litigation funding sector. The panel – moderated by Ed Truant (ET) of Slingshot Capital – consisted of Jonathan Rix (JR), Senior Associate at UK-based PE firm Partners Capital, Kendra Corbett (KC), Principal on the Investment team of independent asset manager Cloverlay, and David Demeter (DD), Investment Director of Davidson College’s $1Bn endowment fund.
The event also featured a keynote address from Charles Agee, founder of Westfleet Advisors, a litigation funding advisory firm. Charles discussed the key findings of his 2020 Litigation Finance Market Report–the most holistic industry survey on the market.
Omni Bridgeway is poised to grow its services for German clients. With that in mind, the firm has added Anna-Maria Quinke to its team. Quinke is an anti-trust litigation specialist who will now serve as Senior Legal Counsel as well as an Investment Manager.
New investment fund Sandfield Capital has launched this week to tackle an increasingly challenging area of litigation that remains poorly served by the market. Steven D’Ambrosio, a former Finance Director at Close Brothers Premium Finance, has conceived and built a number of highly-successful ventures in the financial and legal sectors and remains extremely passionate about creating and tailoring funding solutions. Now, with Sandfield Capital, he hopes to enable real change in the sector for the good of those struggling to engage with legal services.
Hosted by Jim Batson, the newest episode of Omni Bridgeway’s podcast features Ariana Tadler, founder of Tadler Law. Baston runs Omni’s New York office and serves as Senior Investment Manager. Tadler is an accomplished class action litigator and a global authority on e-Discovery. She is a founding member of Meta-e Discovery, which does consulting and data hosting.
An upcoming meeting of Fronterra milk suppliers promises to provide information about the developing class action. Fronterra, a major milk processor, is accused of engaging in deceptive and misleading conduct by failing to price match another major milk processor—Murray Goulburn.
In the past year, COVID has wreaked financial havoc, business interruption, and court delays. It has also led to spikes in specific types of litigation. With that in mind, Litigation Funding is enjoying a resurgence that appears to be here to stay. A legal firm that typically relies on fees from clients may find itself in dire financial straits. Even a firm that’s meeting its goals for billable hours may find that clients are less able to pay.
California’s Closing the Justice Gap Working Group is exploring possibilities for amendments to the Rules of Professional Conduct as part of a move to boost access to justice.
The following article was contributed by John Hanley and Douglas Schneller of Rimon Law, P.C.
An issue that keeps some litigation funders up at night concerns the possibility of a claimant filing for bankruptcy after receiving funding and before their underlying case is resolved. Proceeds from the case may become property of the bankruptcy estate and made available to the transferor’s creditors. A carefully drafted litigation funding agreement (“LFA”) can increase the likelihood that the right to receive a portion of litigation proceeds is legally isolated (like the island in the picture above) and beyond the reach of the transferor’s creditors or a bankruptcy trustee.[1]
On a recent episode of the Litigation Finance Podcast, Grant Farrar of Arran Capital discussed his firm’s value proposition as the only litigation funder focused solely on public sector financing. Grant explains why public sector funding merits its own categorization, what the sticking points are in convincing politicians and others of litigation funding’s value, and what his expectations are for future growth in this rapidly-evolving space.
In this post-Brexit world, London has long positioned itself as a global destination for disputes. A new Court of Appeal judgment clarifying laws relating to Damages Based Agreements helps support that goal. The recent ruling affirms the importance of DBAs, allowing greater access to justice.
Now that Litigation Finance has established itself as a viable industry, laws are being written to clarify finer points and add consistency to laws across jurisdictions. One area of focus is how costs are handled, both in terms of the UK adverse costs regime, and in possible new requirements for third-party funders wishing to obtain securities for cost.
Omni Bridgeway has been a leader in Litigation Finance for over 30 years. In that time, they’ve made a name for themselves in the US, Canada, the Middle East, Asia, and Australia. Now, the company is making a move to Brazil, Chile, Peru, Mexico, and Argentina with the formation of the Omni Bridgeway Latin America Group.
There’s no apparent end in sight to the legal battles between insurers and policyholders with regard to business interruption and COVID. At least five law firms are looking at potential class actions against insurers denying that their business interruption policies do not cover pandemics.
Most business owners are feeling the pressures of COVID. Startups and established brands alike are finding new challenges to overcome as they negotiate lower sales figures, supply chain hassles, and budget shortfalls. But solutions are available if you know where to look.
With remote work now mainstream, it’s become the norm for Legal Tech firms to hire well outside their physical location. While this opens up new opportunities to recruit talent, it also increases competition for job seekers, and companies looking to hire. What might this mean for Litigation Finance?
Millberg London has stated that, along with the assistance of third-party litigation funders, they will assume all upfront charges in order to begin legal action against Vauxhall. This will ensure that class participants will not bear any costs associated with the case, minimizing their personal liability.
Senior Investment Manager and Head of Omni Bridgeway’s offices in New York, Jim Batson, recently hosted Omni’s Beyond Hourly podcast. Batson is a former commercial litigator and law firm partner. The podcast features Ariana Tadler, founder of Tadler Law.
The number of litigation finance providers in the United States, their assets under management (AUM), and the dollars they committed to new financing deals, all grew over the last year, according to a new report from litigation finance advisory firm, Westfleet Advisors. According to The Westfleet Insider: 2020 Litigation Finance Market Report, between June 2019 and June 2020, 46 active funders managed a combined $11.3 billion in assets allocated to US commercial litigation investments, an 18% increase from the previous year. Despite the onset of a global pandemic and resulting disruption to the justice system, the total dollars committed to new investments by funders also grew by 6% – to $2.47 billion.
