News and analysis dedicated to the consumer legal funding sector including mass torts, regulatory issues, case developments, funding activities, and more.

Last week, Utah became the latest state to introduce a litigation funding bill, as state senator James A. Dunnigan filed House Bill 312, which would force litigation funders to register with the Department of Commerce, and also aims to regulate how they operate. Many lawmakers are blaming litigation funding for the rising cost of insurance, which is an argument that is being made by Big Insurance and the Chamber of Commerce against the industry. 

Consumer Legal Funding has been a hot-button issue in Missouri for some time. There has been some concern from industry participants that Missouri may go the way of West Virginia and effectively ban the industry, but it is doubtful the legislature will take up the issue of capping rates on funding transactions in the next legislative session. 

In List Interactive, Ltd. v. Knights of Columbus, Judge R. Brooke Jackson denied a motion to restrict public access to litigation funding agreements, finding that the content of the agreements are in the public interest. Judge Jackson confirmed that dollar amounts and specific terms may constitute trade secrets, but ruled that restricting access to the entire agreement is ‘grossly overbroad.’ 

After the state of West Virginia amended article 6N of its Consumer Credit and Protection Act this past summer, the litigation funding industry has essentially been prevented from operating in the state. And that’s exactly what industry opponents were hoping for. 

Couples save for weddings, not divorces. As a result, many are cash-strapped and taken aback by the high costs of divorce. This places undue burden on attorneys, who must often choose between working on contingency or turning away clients. Fortunately, divorce attorneys can leverage divorce funding options, which allow receivables to be covered as they emerge. 

Tom Girardi, of the eponymous law firm Girardi Keese, has been ordered to deliver to his financials to the court after he failed to pay $6MM of a $16MM settlement with Law Finance Group. Law Finance sued Girardi for failure to repay a $15MM loan, and eventually settled on the $16MM figure, only to claim that Girardi skipped out on the final $6MM payment.