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

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SPONSORED POST: ELEV8 ANNOUNCES LITIGATION FINANCE CONFERENCE TO BE HELD IN NYC

By John Freund |

ELEV8: Litigation Finance conference unveils the latest investment opportunities and trends in the exploding litigation market that has grown by over 400% in the last 5 years. For investors, litigation finance presents a vehicle to deploy capital uncorrelated to equity or debt markets, with the opportunity to realize significant returns. The conference connects investors, law firms, plaintiff, thought leaders and regulatory agencies in order to facilitate actionable dialogue and foster a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem. In support of that mission, we sponsor an ongoing effort to share information and build confidence in deal making to accelerate the growth of litigation finance.

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DOJ Considers Requiring False Claims Act Whistleblowers to Disclose Litigation Funding

By John Freund |

Deputy Associate Attorney General Stephen Cox of the Justice Department gave a speech on Monday to False Claims Act (FCA) attorneys, and Cox expressed concern that DOJ doesn’t know the extent to which FCA attorneys are using litigation funding. Cox mentioned that Justice is considering mandating disclosure of litigation funding agreements for FCA whistleblowers. 

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Maarten van Luyn joins Omni Bridgeway and IMF Bentham in Europe as Director of Collective Redress

By John Freund |

AMSTERDAM, 23 January 2020: Omni Bridgeway and IMF Bentham Limited (ASX:IMF) are delighted to announce the addition of veteran commercial lawyer, Mr Maarten van Luyn, to the company’s expanding Europe team. Maarten joins as Director of Collective Redress, based in Amsterdam, where he will source, assess and manage high value strategic litigation finance solutions throughout Europe, with a focus on group claims and LegalTech solutions for group claims.

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Litigation Finance Firm BlueWhite Legal Capital Expands Team With Experienced Law And Finance Professionals

By John Freund |

NEW YORKJan. 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — BlueWhite Legal Capital (“BlueWhite”), a privately-held litigation finance firm, today announced that Daniel Stone, most recently with Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP, and Joseph Magnus, most recently with Morgan Stanley, have joined the firm as Managing Directors. Both individuals bring deep expertise in their respective fields of law and finance.

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Former Boies Schiller Flexner Lawyers Launch Premier Litigation Boutique Roche Cyrulnik Freedman LLP

By John Freund |

NEW YORKJan. 15, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Kyle Roche, Jason Cyrulnik and Vel Freedman today announced the launch of a premier litigation boutique, Roche Cyrulnik Freedman LLP (RCF) (www.rcfllp.com). RCF’s 12 former Boies Schiller Flexner litigators, including two equity partners, represent the first breakaway firm from Boies Schiller Flexner LLP since that firm’s inception in 1997.

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Litigation Funding in India is Growing

By John Freund |

According to the Amendments to the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, (Order XXV Rule 3), litigation funding in India is permissible, in that non-lawyers are not restricted from accepting remuneration upon a completed claim. With recent litigation funding partnerships in the engineering and construction sectors, it seems litigation funding in India is poised for growth. 

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Should Lawyers Partnering with Funders Have Skin in the Game?

By John Freund |

Among the chief concerns over the rise of litigation funding are the potential growth of frivolous lawsuits, and funder control over case decisions. While those worries haven’t exactly panned out as many industry skeptics had imagined, they remain nagging concerns as the funding industry continues to expand with new entrants and capital sources. One unifying solution to both of these ethical problems is to mandate that lawyers who partner with litigation funders operate on success-based fee arrangements. 

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Battle Over Common Fund Orders in Australia Highlights Changing Attitudes Towards Litigation Funding

By John Freund |

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.  

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Affiniti Finance Announces £10MM Funding Line to Royds Withy King

By John Freund |

We are delighted to announce we have established a funding facility with major law firm, Royds Withy King. This £10 million pound innovative funding facility will allow the law firm to offer clients a competitive edge in the litigation arena where the costs of pursuing claims to trial can be prohibitively expensive. The funding will enable clients to unlock claims which they might otherwise find difficult to bring or where they wish to structure their own finances to the benefit of their business interests rather than the litigation.

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Game Changes for Litigation Funders as Australian Supreme Court Revokes Courts’ Power to Initiate Common Fund Orders

By John Freund |

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. 

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Allianz Identifies Five Risk Trends for Directors and Officers in 2020

By John Freund |

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–The range of risks facing company executives or directors and officers (D&Os) – as well as resulting insurance claims scenarios – has increased significantly in recent years. With corporate management under the spotlight like never before, a new report by insurer Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty (AGCS) highlights five mega trends that will have significant risk implications for senior management in 2020 and beyond. The report, Directors And Officers Insurance Insights 2020”, also examines some of the factors which are driving recent changes in the D&O insurance market after a period of sustained large loss activity.

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IMF Bentham Formally Jumps into Contentious CBL Class Action

By John Freund |

Last week, we reported on the contentious back-and-forth between litigation funders LPF Group and IMF Bentham. LPF accused IMF of muddying the waters with a potential shareholder action against failed insurer CBL, whom LPF is already bankrolling an action against. Now, IMF Bentham has formally stepped into the fray, after law firm Glaister Ennor filed a shareholder action which the Aussie-based funder is backing on a no-win, no-fee basis.

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Arowana Unfazed by LPF Group’s Class Action

By John Freund |

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.

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Litigation Funders Chomping at the Bit to Invest in Obamacare Insurance Claims

By John Freund |

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. 

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Litigation Funders Spar as LPF Group Complains to ASIC About IMF Bentham

By John Freund |

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. 

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Burford Targets Gender Inequity in Law with Equity Project

By John Freund |

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. 

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$2.3 Billion of Capital Deployed Over 12-Month Period Across U.S. Commercial Litigation Finance Industry, According to First-of-Its-Kind Study

By John Freund |

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.

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