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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.

The husband of reality TV star Erika Jayne is being held in civil contempt along with his law firm. A federal judge in a Chicago court made the decision after Thomas Girardi and the Girardi Keese law firm failed to identify the whereabouts of more than $2 million in payments for survivors and family of the Lion Air Flight 610 plane crash.

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.

Litigation Finance received a holiday gift in the form of a new UK Supreme Court decision allowing a GBP 14 billion case to proceed against credit giant Mastercard. The claim, which could involve over 46 million claimants, alleges that the credit card group charged excessively high fees and overcharged customers regularly.

Indiana Resources, an ASX-listed gold mining company in Australia, is proceeding with its case against the Government of Tanzania. The case involves the alleged illegal expropriation of a nickel mining project. The action is led by two incorporated UK companies: Ntaka Nickel Holdings, and Nachingwea UK.

The Third Annual Ethics Summit from Frankfurt Kurnit was held last month. The litigation funding panel covered a host of ethical and legal points of interest. These include coverage of the back-and-forth between the industry and the NYC Bar Association, and the ever-evolving rules of professional ethics.

The first day of the Global Class Actions Symposium brought with it new considerations for claims filed in the US and EU. In the United States, champerty is still an issue, as nearly half of all states do not allow the practice of Litigation Finance. Some have even said that regulatory trends are moving in two directions at once—with some seeking to restrict or heavily regulate the use of litigation funding, and others laying the groundwork for its mainstream acceptance.

Eni, the Italian energy company, was recently given court approval to subpoena companies accused of taking part in the Nigeria OPL 245 scandal. This is expected to include asset recovery companies as well as litigation funders. Previously, Eni suggested that the government had taken action under pressure from third parties who are hoping to profit illegally.

Scottsdale, Arizona’s leading litigation finance and consulting firm has established a scholarship in support of gifted students. The scholarship will go to exceptional students attending Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University.

 In an insolvency situation, a company and its legal department will have to structure an affirmative recovery program. After that comes building a framework to identify claims they’ll pursue. In this process, understanding potential claims and being aware that an affirmative recovery program is underway are both critical. That’s why keeping everyone in the loop is essential.

Infighting among members of the Akhmedov family continues, as divorcee Tatiana Akhmedova continues to accuse her son of hiding assets. Temur Akhmedov, London oil trader and son of Farkhad Akhmedov, denies that he hid money from his mother.

The Omni Bridgeway Toronto team grows larger with the addition of Mara Abols. She’ll be serving as a member of the Legal, Risk, and Compliance team, which handles global legal issues.

Two insurers have been accused of wrongdoing by Blackmore Bonds after refusing to pay out to bondholders. Bondholders are guaranteed by law to receive shortfalls if the company becomes insolvent. They have stated the likelihood of legal proceedings in order to force payment.

A class action brought by plaintiff Omid Arsalani has been granted carriage by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. The case is in relation to the downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 on January 8th.

Recommendations from the New Zealand Law Commission include strong support for litigation funding as well as advocating for a strong class action regime. Meanwhile, insurance companies are among those are expected to balk at any new policies making class action suits more common.

In an already difficult year for companies around the world, a new report from global firm Dechert tells us to expect even more hardship. A new report predicts that both the number of settlements and the final settlement sizes are expected to rise significantly.

Adam Gerchen, whose 2016 sale of his litigation finance company to Burford Capital made waves, is at it again. This time with partner Jeffrey Hammes (formerly of Kirkland & Ellis) and their special purpose acquisition company. The pair are looking for a new acquisition thanks to an IPO over-allotment of $175 million.

Noted class action firm Quinn Emanual Urquhart & Sullivan is reportedly investigating a recent ASX trading outage. Could this mean a class action is forthcoming on behalf of those impacted by the glitch? ASX has accepted responsibility for the occurrence, though it’s not clear what that acceptance means in a legal context.

Opt-out class actions will soon be the standard in New Zealand just as they are in Australia, thanks to a new Supreme Court ruling. A case involving Southern Response Earthquake Service Limited and a New Zealand couple has led to the ruling. The general legal thinking is that an opt-out standard improves access to justice.

Tom Girardi, the real-life Erin Brockovich lawyer, and his “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” wife are being sued for embezzlement. They’re accused of misappropriating funds from the Lion Air crash settlement. Rather than giving the money to the victims, the couple is accused of using the funds in service of an “outrageous lifestyle.”

More than ¾ of firm lawyers surveyed expressed concern about 4th quarter collections. More than half of firms have also stated a willingness to provide discounts in order to receive payments faster or to gain new clients. Meanwhile, realization rates are falling.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is known for his zeal in regulating the litigation funding industry in Australia. He was instrumental in instituting new restrictions and mandates for those who engage in the practice, and for funders themselves—including a requirement that funders register as Managed Investment Schemes while holding AFSL’s.

We all know that civil litigation takes time. Some cases can take hundreds of thousands of dollars and years to reach completion. The average time for a civil case is on a steady rise, and COVID-related delays impact that even more.

Complaining that she has only received $7 million and an ill-kept helicopter, divorcee Tatiana Akhmedova was due to face her son Temur in court in an effort to gain the rest of her $600 million divorce settlement. This time, the asset in question is a $40 million London apartment.

Shareholders of Vocation Limited, a now-defunct training company, have settled a class action for a reported $50 million. Vocation had been listed on the ASX as of November 2013, and enjoyed a reputation as Australia’s premier provider of education and vocational training services. Slater and Gordon facilitated the settlement, funded by Omni Bridgeway.

Mining company Rio Tinto finds itself under threat of legal action from a US hedge fund. Pentwater Capital Management is threatening an oppression order to gain an extension of debt in order to expand the Oyu Tolgoi mine project into the Gobi desert. The expansion is controversial, in that it requires the destruction of a sacred Aboriginal site.