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Bridge Legal, a leading provider of AI legal workflows, data management, and predictive analytics solutions for litigation funders and the high-volume law firms they support, is pleased to announce the appointment of Chris Dore as Managing Director, Strategic Opportunities.

With over 15 years of experience as a litigator and litigation funder specializing in mass torts, single-event, and class-action matters, Chris brings a wealth of expertise to Bridge Legal. Prior to joining the company, he served as a Partner at Edelson PC, a nationally recognized mass tort and class-action law firm, and most recently as a Director at Burford Capital, the world’s largest litigation funder.

In his new role, Chris will focus on expanding and managing Bridge Legal’s capital market strategies in high-volume consumer litigation. He will leverage the company’s industry leading marketing, intake, case maturation, and AI-driven software platform—Bridgify—to strengthen relationships within the mass tort, mass arbitration, and single-event space. His efforts aim to enhance the sophistication of services offered to Bridge Legal’s law firm and litigation funder clients, providing them with the tools and resources necessary to thrive amidst increasing data complexity and operational risk.

“Bridgify’s AI workflow capabilities are transforming the way litigation funders and law firms operate by providing unprecedented visibility over their investments and case portfolios,” said Ed Scanlan, Founder & CEO of Bridge Legal. “We are thrilled to welcome Chris to our leadership team. His extensive experience in mass torts and litigation funding aligns perfectly with our strategic vision. With his leadership, we aim to further enhance Bridgify’s AI-driven solutions to meet the evolving needs of litigation funders and the firms they support. Chris’s role will be pivotal in deepening our relationships within the industry and elevating the services we provide.”

“I’m excited to join the leading legal tech company in the industry,” said Chris. “Bridgify represents the future of high-volume legal services and litigation funding by integrating AI to streamline and enhance every facet of investment and case management. By focusing on expanding capital investments in high-volume consumer litigation and leveraging Bridge Legal’s innovative platforms, we can provide unparalleled value to our clients. I look forward to contributing to Bridge Legal’s mission of increasing human access to justice and helping to lead the company into its next chapter.”

About Bridge Legal

Bridge Legal is the leading provider of AI workflow and predictive analytics solutions for litigation funders and the law firms they support. From its Chicago office, the company also offers marketing and intake services to help firms build their dockets, as well as back-office support for rapid case prove-up, including Plaintiff Fact Sheets and medical record reviews. Combined with its flagship platform, Bridgify—which includes data management and normalization, AI-driven workflow automation, integration management, predictive analytics, client communication and asset monitoring and fund management—this provides a game-changing, flexible offering unmatched in the industry. By integrating advanced technology with industry expertise, Bridge Legal empowers its clients to streamline operations, enhance client services, and drive profitable growth in an increasingly complex legal landscape.

The Center on Civil Justice at New York University School of Law mission is dedicated to the U.S. civil justice system and the continued fulfillment of its purpose. The Center brings together the unmatched strengths of the NYU Law faculty in the fields of procedure and complex litigation with the sophisticated practitioners and judges who make up our Board of Advisers.  Together we endeavor to support our civil courts as a place for people to fairly and efficiently resolve their problems and access justice.

The Center on Civil Justice at NYU School of Law will host a one-day conference on October 28, 2024 on the subject of legislative efforts to regulate third-party legal funding with the goal of connecting the debates on key legal funding issues taking place in academia and among practitioners, lobbyists and legislators, in the US and in Europe.  

The conference will consist of three panels, each focusing on a different legal funding reform effort. These include U.S. legislative efforts to regulate commercial litigation financing and consumer legal funding, in addition to an examination of European and other international legislative attempts to regulate third-party funding. The bill sponsors will be invited to present, along with experts on the topics the bill covers.

The event will take place on October 28, 2024, from 9am – 3:30pm.  We encourage everyone to attend in-person at Greenberg Lounge of Vanderbilt Hall, 40 Washington Square South, NY, NY 10012.

For those who cannot do so, the event will also be livestreamed via Zoom.  A link will be sent out to everyone who RSVPs.

The event is free, and we will be applying for CLE credit. 

Register Here: https://forms.gle/Z5UuQcB2geNhRe7dA.

9:15 AM – 9:30 AM – Opening Remarks

9:30 AM – 11:00 AM – Panel 1: Disclosure of Commercial Litigation Financing Agreements

While much of the state legislation enacted on third-party litigation finance has focused on consumer legal funding, states and the federal government have begun to think about the regulation of commercial litigation funding as well.  Specifically, the issue of whether, under what circumstances, and to what extent to disclose commercial third-party funding has been one of the most significant policy questions facing the industry for years.   Legislation has been introduced or passed in West Virginia, Wisconsin, and US Congress regarding disclosure of commercial funding agreements, and we will discuss these bills and others and how they will impact the commercial funding landscape.

11:15 AM – 12:45 PM – Panel 2: New York A.115 – Consumer Funding

Much, if not most, state legislation focuses specifically on consumer legal funding and not commercial litigation financing.  New York State alone has five different such bills.  This panel chooses to focus on A.115, which has passed the New York State Senate but not the Assembly – the bill that has so far advanced the furthest.  This bill caps returns to funders at the military lending rate.  Other bills do not place such a cap at all but require full disclosure of the contract.  This panel will discuss what is the best way forward to regulate the product in New York and across the country.

12:45 PM – 1:30 PM – Lunch

1:30 PM – 3:00 PM – Panel 3: EU P9_TA (2022) 0308 – International Legislation

In 2022, the EU Parliament adopted a resolution to introduce legislation creating minimum standards for third-party funding in the EU.  The European Commission has yet to submit a formal proposal for the EU Parliament and European Commission to consider.  However, the principals outlined in the resolution highlight many significant discussion points within the industry and demonstrate the state of international regulation of the industry.

3:00 PM – 3:15 PM – Closing Remarks

RSVP for the event here: https://forms.gle/Z5UuQcB2geNhRe7dA.

In the most significant demonstration of concern for secretive third-party litigation funding (TPLF) to date, 124 companies, including industry leaders in healthcare, technology, financial services, insurance, energy, transportation, automotive and other sectors today sent a letter to the Advisory Committee on Civil Rules urging creation of a new rule that would require a uniform process for the disclosure of TPLF in federal cases nationwide. The Advisory Committee on Civil Rules will meet on October 10 and plans to discuss whether to move ahead with the development of a new rule addressing TPLF.

The letter, organized by Lawyers for Civil Justice (LCJ), comes at a time when TPLF has grown into a 15 billion dollar industry and invests funding in an increasing number of cases which, in turn, has triggered a growing number of requests from litigants asking courts to order the disclosure of funding agreements in their cases. The letter contends that courts are responding to these requests with a “variety of approaches and inconsistent practices [that] is creating a fragmented and incoherent procedural landscape in the federal courts.” It states that a rule is “particularly needed to supersede the misplaced reliance on ex parte conversations; ex parte communications are strongly disfavored by the Code of Conduct for U.S. Judges because they are both ineffective in educating courts and highly unfair to the parties who are excluded.”

Reflecting the growing concern with undisclosed TPLF and its impact on the justice system, LCJ and the Institute for Legal Reform (ILR) submitted a separate detailed comment letter to the Advisory Committee that also advocates for a “simple and predictable rule for TPLF disclosure.”

Alex Dahl, LCJ’s General Counsel said: “The Advisory Committee should propose a straightforward, uniform rule for TPLF disclosure. Absent such a rule, the continued uncertainty and court-endorsed secrecy of non-party funding will further unfairly skew federal civil litigation. The support from 124 companies reflects both the importance of a uniform disclosure rule and the urgent need for action.”

The corporate letter advances a number of additional reasons why TPLF disclosure is needed in federal courts:

Control: The letter argues that parties “cannot make informed decisions without knowing the stakeholders who control the litigation… and cannot understand the control features of a TPLF agreement without reading the agreement.” While many funding agreements state that the funder does not control the litigation strategy, companies are increasingly concerned that they use their growing financial leverage to exercise improper influence.

Procedural safeguards: The companies maintain that the safeguards embodied in the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) cannot work without disclosure of TPLF.  One example is that courts and parties today are largely unaware of and unable to address conflicts between witnesses, the court, and parties on the one hand, and non-parties on the other, when these funding agreements and the financial interests behind them remain largely secret.

Appraisal of the case: Finally, the letter reasons that the FRCP already require the disclosure of corporate insurance policies which the Advisory Committee explained in 1970 “will enable counsel for both sides to make the same realistic appraisal of the case, so that settlement and litigation strategy are based on knowledge and not speculation.” The companies maintain that this very same logic should also require the disclosure of TPLF given its growing role and impact on federal civil litigation.

Besides the corporate letter and joint comment, LCJ is intensifying its efforts to rally companies and practitioners to Ask About TPLF in their cases, and to press for a uniform federal rule to require disclosure. LCJ will be launching a new Ask About TPLF website that will serve as a hub for its new campaign later this month.

On September 26th, LFJ hosted a virtual town hall titled “Spotlight on Insurance.” The panel discussion featured David Kerstein (DK), Founder and Managing Director at Arcadia Finance, Michael Perich (MP), Director, Head of Litigation Insurance at Lockton Companies, Steve Jones (SJ), Managing Director, M&A, Litigation and Tax Practice at Gallagher, and Jeremy Marshall, Chief Investment Officer and Managing Director, Winward U.K. Limited. The panel was moderated by Jim Batson (JB), Chief Operating Officer at Westfleet Advisors.

Below are some key takeaways from the event:

JB: As Arcadia is a relatively new player in the litigation finance space, how has Arcadia incorporated insurance products into your underwriting and claims selection processes?

DK: As we were raising capital earlier this year, we explored using insurance to wrap a future portfolio, to potentially help drive fundraising and lower cost of capital. We weren’t able to do that as a first-time manager, but it’s something we’d like to explore in the future. We’re currently exploring traditional insurance products like JPI, and wrapping portfolios that may be on the edge of our mandate, and wrapping them in insurance would help us get to ‘yes.’

JB: So wrapping portfolios will help you look at some deals you might not otherwise consider?

DK: Exactly.

JB: Steve, can you give us an overview of the current Legal Insurance market? Especially focusing on recent developments in Capital Protection Insurance.

SJ: At the moment, I’m seeing a lot of innovation, so it seems like no two deals are the same, as there is a lot of creativity to get deals done. Very high submission rates, which probably suggests that knowledge of the products is increasing. And I see insurers and funders collaborating. It’s very seldom we see funders approach portfolio deals without thinking of insurance, and capital protection insurance (CPI) is the most obvious example of that. The net result of all of that is increased choice for clients, which I think we can all agree is a good thing.

JB: Jeremy, how do you view the relationship between funders and insurers? Some have thought of insurers as competitors to litigation funders – an example is in the appeal context, where the client has the option of taking funding and de-risking immediately, or taking insurance and de-risking at conclusion of the matter. How do you see the relationship between insurers and funders evolving?

JM: I view it very much as a collaborative venture, for at least two specific reasons: One is the competition appeal tribunal (CAT) in the UK. You couldn’t go into the CAT without the support of the insurers. And that morphs into the concept of co-funding, which is growing. And you wouldn’t be able to do this without insurers, particularly when you’ve got a policy with an insurer and you’re invited to participate with somebody else, it might be syndicated with more than one funder– all the insurers are going to have positions in relation to that and you’re not going to get it off the ground without the insurers involved. It really is a team effort, as cases have lots of ups and downs.

Without a good relationship with an insurer, you’re not going to get off the ground. And particularly in a client-facing situation, you want insurers and funders to be speaking with the same voice, and often you’ll see in points of tension where clients and law firms sometimes, will try to play the ‘divide and rule game’ with insurers and funders. And we need to speak with a unified voice if we can. And I think that will grow in time, where insurers will play a bigger role in both the front and back end of a transaction.

JB: Michael, from your perspective, what are you seeing as the most interesting trends in terms of the intersection of insurance and litigation funding?

MP: Litigation insurance has been in the transaction space for quite a long time. What we’ve been seeing lately is a substantial uptick in deal flow based on increased awareness and knowledge of the product base. Some of that deal flow are things that are not insurable (in the US market) – things like portfolios of personal injury or mass tort cases. Those won’t be insurable in the US. But we’re seeing more IP and antitrust cases, and more interest around building a sustainable market that involves portfolio risks and complex pieces of commercial litigation that helps make a more efficient transaction for everybody. And that’s where all of the parties are getting more aligned. So over the past six months, we’ve been noticing a lot more collaboration and innovation lately, which is a good thing.

For the full panel discussion, please click here.

Burford Capital, the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law, has grown significantly since its founding in 2009. As part of ongoing recognition of the growth in legal finance and Burford’s industry leadership as it celebrates its 15^th anniversary, it today shares data from its own performance and releases new research based on one-on-one phone interviews with senior lawyers at global law firms who have a front seat to growing awareness and use of legal finance by their clients and firms.

Christopher Bogart, CEO of Burford Capital, says: “Jon Molot and I started Burford 15 years ago because of economic inefficiencies we saw in the business of law. We’re delighted that our business has since grown from niche to mainstream and is now truly ‘corporate finance for law.’ From day one, our priority has been to listen to clients’ needs, and as a result, we have a suite of tools that provide liquidity, de-risk contingent matters and enable more strategic affirmative recoveries. Burford has earned a reputation as the go-to firm for legal finance, and we’re excited about the road ahead. We’ll keep our focus on clients, innovation and advancing the business of law.”

Data from Burford’s business confirms its performance as a legal finance industry leader:

• Exceptional growth in our business: Burford began in 2009 as a $130 million fund; today, Burford has a portfolio of more than $7 billion.

• Increased demand for what we do: In 2009, Burford committed $11 million to legal finance assets; in 2023, that number was $1.2 billion on a Group-wide basis.

• Growing relevance to sophisticated businesses, with innovation to address corporate balance sheet and P&L needs: More than half our business now comes from corporate clients. Many seek monetizations ― where Burford provides businesses immediate capital by advancing some of the expected entitlement of a pending claim, judgment or award ― and we have committed very substantial capital over the past five years to monetization deals from $10 million to $325 million.

• Development of human capital and proprietary data: In 2009, we had five employees; today, we have seven offices and more than 150 employees. In addition, Burford has built an industry-leading proprietary database of commercial dispute outcomes and tools that harness machine learning, data analytics and artificial intelligence to benefit our clients and our performance.

• NYSE-listed in 2020: We have been public since 2009 and have been listed on the New York Stock Exchange since 2020.

Similarly, research released today by Burford reveals that legal finance has exploded in visibility and value with lawyers. Key findings include:

• 82% of law firm lawyers surveyed claim to have used legal finance, a ninefold increase since Burford first asked law firm lawyers this question in 2012. Although confirmation bias may result in overstatement of actual use, even accounting for this, legal finance’s enormous increased stated use reflects its visibility and acceptance in the business of law.

• Lawyers are using legal finance in more sophisticated ways: Many law firm lawyers affirm that legal finance is now used to strategically manage risk rather than because clients lack funds. Law firm lawyers and their clients see legal finance as a strategic tool across commercial litigation and arbitration as well as more complex financial structures like portfolio financing and funded patent divestitures.

• An Am Law 50 law firm partner said: “For some of the bigger clients, you see more portfolio deals rather than single transactions. Not many companies start with a portfolio, but as they see success, both law firms and corporations are pursuing portfolio transactions.”

• Law firms are embracing legal finance to fuel growth, as more than eight in ten of those surveyed report a more positive perception of legal finance than 15 years ago.

• A Global 100 law firm partner said: “The client’s mindset has completely changed, and they are now coming to their outside counsel and asking for litigation funding options. Offering the use of funding and using it is a validation of the merit of a claim and is a good pressure point.”

• Law firm lawyers confirm that corporate clients are increasingly using legal finance, as 82% of those surveyed said the use of legal finance by corporations has increased over this period.

• A litigation boutique partner said: “Litigation is a bottom-line cost. If corporations can spread that risk by sharing it with an outside capital provider, CFOs want to explore that option, especially because corporations hate litigation expenses. They are much more open to it if they can get some or all of it covered by legal finance.”

The research is based on one-on-one phone interviews conducted by Ari Kaplan Advisors with 44 senior lawyers from global law firms in August and September 2024. The participants included partners, department heads and practice group chairs. Of these respondents, 34% came from AmLaw 100 law firms and 30% from Global 100 law firms.

The International Legal Finance Association (ILFA), the only global association of commercial legal finance companies, today announced the addition of Paris-based legal finance provider IVO Capital Partners as its 25th member. 

“ILFA is pleased to welcome IVO Capital Partners to our growing membership ranks,” said Shannon Campagna, ILFA’s interim Executive Director. “IVO’s addition serves as the quarter century mark for ILFA’s global membership. The firm will play a crucial role in helping ILFA promote the highest standards of operation and service for the commercial legal finance sector around the world.” 

“We are thrilled that IVO’s team is joining ILFA’s diverse roster of commercial legal funders,” said Neil Purslow, ILFA Chairman and Co-Founder of Therium, an ILFA member. “The addition of yet another legal finance provider this year demonstrates the increasingly important role that ILFA plays as the global voice for the ever-expanding legal finance industry, particularly in Europe.” 

IVO Capital Partners is an independent asset management company specializing in corporate debt and has established itself as a leader in the European legal finance industry. The firm boasts over a decade of experience in litigation funding, investing over $166 million in 64 cases across a wide array of geographies and action types. IVO is currently deploying its third legal finance fund, IVO Legal Strategies Fund III SLP. 

“The key role being played by ILFA in working with members of the litigation funding industry, as well as all other professionals involved with this industry, has made this membership a requirement for us to be even more active in the evolution and growth of the industry,” said Paul de Servigny, the fund manager of IVO’s litigation finance activities. “With Europe as our main source of business, we are very happy to be able to contribute to growing ILFA’s reach and understanding of different jurisdictions and how litigation finance is viewed there.”

About the International Legal Finance Association 

The International Legal Finance Association (ILFA) represents the global commercial legal finance community, and its mission is to engage, educate and influence legislative, regulatory and judicial landscapes as the voice of the commercial legal finance industry. It is the only global association of commercial legal finance companies and is an independent, non-profit trade association promoting the highest standards of operation and service for the commercial legal finance sector. ILFA has local chapter representation around the world. 

For more information, visit www.ilfa.com and find us on LinkedIn and X @ILFA_Official.

About IVO Capital Partners 

IVO Capital Partners is an independent French asset management company with more than €1.5 billion in assets under management. Founded in 2012, it invests in listed and unlisted credit on emerging market corporate bonds and litigation finance. IVO Capital Partners’ expertise allows its client-investors to access new investment universes with clarity and profitability and also to provide access to financing, on the one hand, to companies established in emerging countries and, on the other hand, to litigation so that they can lead to compensation. The company employs 14 nationalities and invests in more than 50 countries. IVO is among Europe’s leaders in the legal finance industry, with more than $166 million invested and more than 64 cases financed as of 2024. For over a decade, IVO’s expert investment team has ensured asymmetric returns for investors while promoting the rights of parties involved in meritorious litigation and class-action lawsuits. For more information, visit www.ivocapital.com

Member Bio: Richard Culberson is the CEO of VoiceNation and Moneypenny North America, global leaders in outsourced call answering, live chat, receptionist teams and customer service solutions for business large and small, handling over 20 million calls and chats for thousands of organizations. The business  has an award-winning culture, with over 1,000 people across the US and UK. At the centre of this culture is a vision that if you combine awesome people with leading-edge technology, you will supercharge your people and your business, delivering gold standard customer experience and service. Richard is passionate about building teams that leverage new business models and technologies, driving growth and scaling business.

Company Name and Description:  Moneypenny and VoiceNation are America’s leading virtual receptionist & phone answering providers offering 24/7 communication solutions. 

Collectively, Moneypenny and VoiceNation employ over 1,000 people handling millions of calls, chats and bespoke tech solutions for thousands of businesses of all shapes and sizes from sole traders right up to multinational corporations.

Company Website: www.voicenation.com & www.moneypenny.com

Year Founded:  2000

Headquarters:  Atlanta (USA) and Wrexham (UK)

Area of Focus: Richard Culberson, CEO of North America, focuses on strategic growth, innovation, and market expansion in the region combining the very best people and tech to provide gold standard customer contact solutions. 

Member Quote: “Litigation funding is transforming how businesses approach legal disputes. Moneypenny and VoiceNation provide bespoke call answering and customer service solutions, ensuring prompt and professional responses that improve client engagement and lead generation. We also provide 24/7 availability, allowing firms to capture opportunities and deliver excellent customer service even outside regular business hours.”

Burford Capital, the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law, is doubling down on its commitment to addressing the lack of diversity in the leadership of commercial litigation and arbitration. In announcing the third phase of its award-winning Equity Project, Burford is earmarking an additional $150 million to fund commercial matters with a female or racially diverse lawyer in a leadership role, bringing its cumulative funds earmarked for this initiative to more than $300 million.

• Given its leadership in funding global commercial litigation and arbitration, Burford has a front row seat to the continued lack of diverse lawyers in leadership roles and saw a need to address this gap.
• Burford first launched The Equity Project in 2018 with $50 million earmarked to financing cases led by female lawyers.
• In 2021, Burford launched phase two of The Equity Project, earmarking a further $100 million and extending the initiative to also finance racially diverse lawyers; further, it added a promise to contribute a share of proceeds from successfully resolved matters to organizations that promote diversity in the business of law.
• With cumulative Equity Project commitments of almost $170 million, Burford is launching phase three with an additional $150 million earmarked.
• As in phase two, if phase three Equity Project-funded matters resolve successfully and generate expected returns, Burford will contribute on its client’s behalf a portion of its profits to organizations that promote lawyer development for female and racially diverse lawyers.

Aviva Will, President of Burford Capital, leads Burford’s Equity Project initiative. 

Ms. Will states: “The Equity Project reflects Burford’s values and our pragmatism—our belief not only that it is right to use our capital and our industry leadership to help close the diversity gap in the leadership of commercial disputes, but also that there is a tangible benefit to our clients and the business of law to doing so.”

She continues: “The whole Burford team is proud of the impact we have made. Clients appreciate The Equity Project as a tool to promote leadership from diverse backgrounds, and we hear directly from those who’ve been funded that it makes a difference in their careers. From when I first started practicing law to today, the business of law has made progress, but the legal profession remains slow to adapt, and in providing economic levers for change, we are doing our part to expedite still more.”

Equity Project Mission and Impact

The Equity Project enables female and racially diverse lawyers to compete for leadership roles in significant matters with attractive terms in place. It incentivizes firms to promote talent from diverse backgrounds and demonstrates innovation to clients. Businesses can use Equity Project capital to encourage the firms that represent them to appoint female and racially diverse lawyers on their matters, and as a reason to talk to their firms about diverse representation and origination credit.

Equity Project matters funded to date include contract disputes, antitrust, federal statutory, IP/patent and treaty and commercial arbitration matters, with female and racially diverse litigators in leadership roles (first or second chair), and with clients represented by women- or minority-owned firms. Clients include large corporations and large litigation boutiques.

We have to date provided financing for 19 different matters from the Equity Project, some of which were multi-case portfolios. The average amount of capital committed per matter was $8.9 million, indicating that these are large, complex litigation and arbitration matters. The matters qualified for inclusion in the Equity Project on the following basis:

• 14 with first or second chair female lawyers
• 3 with first or second chair racially diverse lawyers
• 2 with both a female and racially diverse lawyer as lead lawyers

Equity Project Champions

Burford has also expanded its cadre of Equity Project Champions, corporate and law firm leaders who will support and spread awareness of the initiative. The expanded list, which is currently in formation, includes the following returning and new* Champions:

APAC

• *Angela Ee, Asean and Singapore Turnaround and Restructuring Strategy Leader, EY-Parthenon
• *Blossom Hing, Director, Dispute Resolution and Corporate Restructuring & Workouts, Drew and Napier
• Brenda Horrigan, International Arbitrator

Europe

• *Conway Blake, Partner, Debevoise & Plimpton
• Amy Frey, Partner, King & Spalding
• Sophie Nappert, International Arbitrator; Co-Founder, ArbTech
• *Akima Paul Lambert, Partner, Hogan Lovells
• Sue Prevezer QC, International Arbitrator, Mediator and Consultant, Brick Court Chambers
• Noradèle Radjai, Partner, Lalive
• *Lauma Skruzmane, Founding and Co-Managing Partner, Butler Reichline Skruzmane
• Daniel Winterfeldt MBE QC (Hon), Founder & Chair Interlaw Diversity Forum, Managing Director & General Counsel – EMEA And Asia, Jefferies

US

• Elizabeth Brannen, Managing Partner & Chair of Intellectual Property Litigation, Stris & Maher
• Mylan Denerstein, Co-Chair, Public Policy Practice Group, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher
• *Ryan Dunigan, Senior Division Counsel, Corning, Incorporated
• The Honorable Katherine B. Forrest, Partner, Paul Weiss
• Faith Gay, Founding Partner, Selendy & Gay
• Maria Ginzburg, Partner, Selendy & Gay
• Megan E. Jones, Partner, Hausfeld
• Carolyn Lamm, Partner, White & Case
• Tara Lee, Partner, White & Case
• Roberta D. Liebenberg, Senior Partner, Fine, Kaplan & Black
• Veta T. Richardson, President & CEO, Association of Corporate Counsel
• Adriana Riviere-Badell, Partner, Kobre & Kim
• *Lauren M. Weinstein, Partner, MoloLamken

About Burford Capital

Burford Capital is the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law. Its businesses include litigation finance and risk management, asset recovery and a wide range of legal finance and advisory activities. Burford is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BUR) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE: BUR), and it works with companies and law firms around the world from its offices in New York, London, Chicago, Washington, DC, Singapore, Dubai and Hong Kong.

For more information, please visit www.burfordcapital.com.

Nakiki SE announces that the two so-called “mask lawsuits” (lawsuits against the federal government for payment related to supply contracts for COVID masks), which are currently in the review phase or at the stage of a Letter of Intent, will not be financed after thorough and detailed examination.

Litigation funders such as Nakiki SE assess claims to be financed through both internal and external legal and economic evaluations. A decision not to finance a claim is not necessarily an indicator of the claim’s chances of success but may also be due to a limited risk appetite or other factors.

In principle, Nakiki SE remains interested in financing so-called mask lawsuits. Affected mask suppliers are still encouraged to contact Nakiki. Each case will be reviewed individually and promptly.

Houzhu Capital is delighted to invite you to join the International Conference on Third-party Funding Industry held in Beijing on 25 Sep, as part of the China Arbitration Week events. You may register here for in-person participation or online stream.

The Conference is the first international conference on TPF in China, which invites representatives from domestic and foreign arbitration centers, leading TPF institutions, well-known scholars, and practitioners from law firms and corporations.

Highlights of the event include:

• Opening speech and welcome from Mr. Jin Huang, Chairman of Beijing International Dispute Resolution Center, and Mr. Jianlong Yu, Vice-president of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT).
• Keynote speech on Third-party Funding in England and Wales: Learning from the Past, and Looking to the Future, by professor Rachael Patricia Mulheron from Queen Mary University.
• Panel I: Third-party Funding in Arbitration Rules, moderated by Ms. Yulin Fu, Professor of Peking University Law School, joined by representatives from arbitration centers.
• Panel II: International and Domestic Practice of Third-party Funding, moderated by Mr. Ning Fei, Senior Consultant of Houzhu Capital, joined by representatives from TPF institutions.
• Panel III: International and Domestic Use of Third-party Funding, moderated by Mr. Jialu Wang, Co-funder of Houzhu Capital, joined by representatives from domestic and international corporations.

A cocktail reception will be provided after the Conference for networking and further communication.

About Houzhu

Houzhu Capital is a leading TPF institution in China with domestic and international business footprints and network. Founded by top legal professionals and as a pioneer in China, Houzhu has been committed to exploring the regulatory development and business practice of TPF services in China, supporting clients in domestic and international dispute resolution and asset recovery. You can find more about Houzhu here[Author2] 

Moneypenny and VoiceNation, leading virtual receptionist and phone answering providers, have appointed a new US Head of Marketing, Kris Altiere.  Kris joins with over 20 years experience in marketing, growing revenue and improving brand awareness for companies of all sizes from start ups to rebrands and merging companies, which she has done time after time with great success.

Kris has a proven track record in establishing the brands she works with as the trusted leaders in their area, with a well defined identity.  She is an award-winning integrated marketing communications strategist, specializing in connecting vision with innovative digital communication solutions to drive sales, build brand image, and secure customer loyalty. Her role at Moneypenny and VoiceNation will be to drive US awareness and further the growth and recognition of the US brands though strategic marketing strategies, further solidifying the value proposition and expanding into new markets.  

Richard Culberson, CEO at Moneypenny North Amercia comments: “We are delighted to welcome Kris to our award-winning company and are excited about the fantastic experience she will bring to Moneypenny and VoiceNation. She’s an excellent addition to our rapidly growing team and her experience and expertise will be invaluable as we continue to strengthen our brands in the US.” 

Kris comments: “I am really looking forward to joining the diverse and global team and utilizing my extensive background and expertise in Healthcare and Legal to further expand those areas within the US, while growing the existing client sectors.  I am excited be part of the Moneypenny and VoiceNation award winning culture and to help lead and grow our marketing team, as well as work with the amazing UK marketing teams, to help the business with our ambitious growth plans.”

About our market-leading brands

Moneypenny and VoiceNation are America’s leading virtual receptionist & phone answering providers offering 24/7 communication solutions. 

Collectively, Moneypenny and VoiceNation employ over 1,000 people handling millions of calls, chats and bespoke tech solutions for thousands of businesses of all shapes and sizes from sole traders right up to multinational corporations.

Rocco has been the underwriting director of Harbour Underwriting Limited since its incorporation and is also its managing director. He is a solicitor who has spent over two decades developing and providing insurance for a wide variety of legal disputes brought around the world. Apart from being a seasoned underwriter, he has also been a director in the investment team of Harbour Litigation Funding and so has vast experience of complex litigation risks.

Rocco is one of the leading figures in the dispute resolution community. Since 2003, he has served on numerous forums and Working Parties of the Civil Justice Council, a statutory body responsible for overseeing and modernising the civil justice system. He has also been the Chair of The Association of British Insurers’ Legal Expenses Committee.

Rocco is named in Band 1 as a Leading Individual in the Litigation Insurance Underwriters UK section ofChambers and Partners Litigation Support guide 2024 and also included in Lawdragon’s 2024 list of the 100 Global Leaders in Litigation Finance.

He is the general editor ofThe Law Society’s Litigation Funding Handbook and the author of several of its chapters, including that on dispute insurance. He is also the co-author of the chapter on legal expenses insurance in the practitioners’ textbookFriston on Costs.

Cases insured by Rocco include:

• various class actions (including securities claims) brought around the world, including in the UK, Australia and Canada
• professional negligence claims, including against lawyers, auditors and surveyors, such as in Levicom International Holdings BV v Linklaters (a firm) [2010] EWCA Civ 494
• intellectual property claims, such as Bentley 1962 Limited & Brandlogic Limited v Bentley Motors Limited [2019] EWHC 2925
• group actions, including environmental claims such as Barr v Biffa Waste Services Ltd [2012] EWCA Civ 312.

Rocco has been instructed over the years as an expert on dispute insurance, including by The Law Society in its intervention in a landmark case heard before the Supreme Court in Coventry v Lawrence [2015] UKSC50.

Company Name and Description:    Harbour Underwriting Ltd

Company Website: https://harbourunderwriting.com

Year Founded:  2016

Headquarters:  4th Floor, 8 Waterloo Place, London England, SW1Y 4BE

Area of Focus:  Commercial dispute insurance

Member Quote: “Litigation funders are sophisticated users of commercial dispute insurance. Even though they may well be confident of the prospects of the case they are funding succeeding, they know only too well how disputes can unexpectedly and inexplicably ‘take a turn’ for the worst and so they value having commercial dispute insurance in place from the outset.”

Litigation Capital Management (LCM) has released its full year audited results for the year ended 30 June 2024.

Highlights

• Net realised gains of A$32.2m (FY23: A$51.5m), with concluded case investments generating a 2.4x multiple of cash invested (MOIC)
• Total income of A$44.7m (FY23: A$67.7m)
• Profit after tax for the period of A$12.7m (FY23: A$31.5m)
• Dividend of 1.25p (FY23: 2.25p)
• Net assets of A$188.9m (FY23: A$183.5m) with cases conservatively valued at 1.9x cash invested
• Book value per share of 94.4 pence (FY23: 90.3 pence)
• Total new commitments of A$279m added in the period (FY23: A$176m)
• Fund I which comprises US$150m of external capital is fully committed and Fund II which comprises US$291m of external capital is 58% committed
• Share buyback program is 70% complete and remains ongoing

Strategic Update

• The Company is continuing its transition to asset management. Fund III marketing to commence towards the end of 2024 calendar year
• Preparing a disciplined and staged entry into the US market. 
• Acquired the intellectual property of a cutting edge legal finance Big Data/AI platform. Application of this technology to form part of US market entry and drive enhanced origination and investment diligence more broadly across the Company

Commenting on the results, Patrick Moloney, CEO of Litigation Capital Management, said: “We are pleased to have extended our industry-leading track record with successful case outcomes over the past 12 months driving our 13-year investment performance to an impressive 2.9x multiple of invested capital. Our transition from balance sheet funder to high return asset manager is progressing well, and we are looking forward to engaging with our LP investor base as we commence marketing for Fund III.

“With our London operations firmly established, having generated realisations of over £100m at a MOIC exceeding 3x, we are now strategically preparing for a disciplined and staged entry into the US market. As part of this strategic initiative, we’ve recently acquired the IP of a leading legal finance Big Data/AI platform. We see substantial opportunities to leverage this technology across our business in an asset class that is ideally suited for such innovation.“

The full result announcement and audited results can be read here.

Bay Point Advisors LLC, an Atlanta-based investment firm with a focus in niche private markets, is proud to announce the successful close of a $50 million capital raise for Bay Point Legal Fund II. This raise demonstrates Bay Point’s commitment to providing innovative investment solutions in the litigation finance sector.

The newly raised capital will be deployed to identify, invest, and support allocations across several litigation strategies, including primary and secondary mass tort acquisition, mass arbitrations, and single event cases.

“This marks a significant milestone in our 12-year journey. Bay Point Legal Fund II advances our initial vision for the firm of offering uncorrelated investment opportunities. We are excited to leverage our team’s expertise in litigation finance to continue our growth trajectory and deliver value for our investors,” said Charles Andros, President and Chief Investment Officer at Bay Point Advisors.

Bay Point Legal has a team of experienced professionals who possess deep expertise in legal, financial, and operational aspects of litigation finance. Bay Point believes that its investment approach and extensive network enable the firm to identify and capitalize on high-value opportunities.

Sean Coleman, Managing Director of Bay Point’s Legal Finance strategy, stated, “We are excited about the closing of Bay Point Legal Fund II. We have substantial capital to make an impact in the quickly evolving litigation finance vertical. Fund II will build on the creative and diversified, equity-type, mass tort investments made in Fund I while also expanding into new investment opportunities such as hybrid torts, abuse cases, mass arbitrations and single events. The fund has the potential to provide returns uncorrelated to equity markets, while also helping deliver equitable compensation to claimants who previously had limited avenues to justice.”

About Bay Point Advisors:

Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Bay Point Advisors is a privately held investment firm with a strategic focus on niche markets often underserved by traditional financial institutions. Bay Point’s broad investment criteria allows for a dynamic response to market shifts. Committed to meeting the evolving needs of clients, Bay Point specializes in the prompt delivery of tailor-made capital.

About Bay Point Legal:

Bay Point Legal is the litigation finance arm of Bay Point Advisors. Specializing in equity investments in mass torts, single events, and mass arbitrations, the fund is dedicated to providing solutions that deliver strong returns while making a positive impact on the lives of those affected by corporate negligence. The legal fund leverages extensive industry experience and a robust network to identify, invest, and manage risk-adjusted investments in litigation finance.

Bryant Park Capital (“BPC”), announced today that Deminor Recovery Services (“Deminor”), a leading privately-owned global litigation funder, recently closed on an approximately $100,000,000 committed senior credit facility and asset-backed financing with two leading U.S. based asset managers focused on the legal assets industry.

BPC, a leading US-based middle market investment bank, served as the exclusive financial advisor to Deminor in connection with this transaction.

“Bryant Park Capital’s extensive knowledge of the financing markets, combined with their strong relationships and creative structuring capability have been invaluable and helped us complete this complex set of transactions that we believe will be transformative for our clients, employees and shareholders, reflecting how our business model and international footprint has expanded since our first external capital raise in 2021. Significantly, these investments, made on Deminor’s own balance sheet, will continue to enable Deminor to deliver fast decision-making and flexible funding terms, with final investment decisions resting with our Investment Committee. Bryant Park Capital has been an excellent partner for us and we greatly appreciate BPC’s guidance and support throughout the process,” said Erik Bomans – CEO, Deminor.

Commenting on Deminor’s platform and performance, Joel Magerman, Bryant Park Capital’s Managing Partner added, “Deminor has generated significant returns extending through multiple market cycles as a leading player in the litigation funding sector, and this capital raise will provide an opportunity to significantly expand the operating leverage of the Deminor platform internationally.”

About Deminor

Founded in 1990, Deminor is a leading privately-owned global litigation funder with 9 offices across continental Europe, London, New York, and Hong Kong.

Deminor has funded cases across four continents and 22 jurisdictions spanning 18 case categories as a leader in investment recovery, anti-trust, collective consumer, and commercial tort across 25 industries.

For more information about Deminor, please visit www.deminor.com.

Burford Capital, the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law, today announces that Travis Lenkner has rejoined the company as a member of its Management Committee in the newly created role of Chief Development Officer.

Based in London, Mr. Lenkner is focused on Burford’s future and its ongoing transformation of the legal industry. His responsibilities involve identifying and executing strategic initiatives that drive growth and align with the company’s long-term objectives, and his areas of focus include law firm equity investments, the alternative delivery of legal services to corporate and individual clients, and legal tech, including AI.

Mr. Lenkner is a longtime global leader in the legal finance market, including as a launch partner of Gerchen Keller Capital, which Burford acquired in 2016. More recently, he co-founded and was Managing Partner of Keller Lenkner LLC; he also co-founded and was a Director of the firm’s European counterpart. In addition, he was Senior Counsel at The Boeing Company and a litigation and appellate attorney at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP. Mr. Lenkner was also a clerk for Justice Anthony M. Kennedy at the Supreme Court of the United States.

Christopher Bogart, CEO of Burford Capital, says: “We are pleased to welcome Travis Lenkner back as a member of the Management Committee in the newly created role of Chief Development Officer, where he will be focused on the continued growth of Burford’s business. Travis has had a tremendous impact as a leader in law and legal finance, which includes the impact he made while previously at Burford. The legal field is generally slow to change but Burford remains committed to being at the forefront of its modernization, including changes related to equity investments in law firms and new technology such as AI. As a seasoned executive who has spent much of his career in legal finance, Travis shares Burford’s commitment to advancing the business of law, and we at Burford welcome his leadership and unique perspective as our business continues to grow.”

About Burford Capital

Burford Capital is the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law. Its businesses include litigation finance and risk management, asset recovery and a wide range of legal finance and advisory activities. Burford is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BUR) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE: BUR), and it works with companies and law firms around the world from its offices in New York, London, Chicago, Washington, DC, Singapore, Dubai and Hong Kong.

For more information, please visit www.burfordcapital.com.

Nera Capital, a pioneering specialist funding provider to law firms, is pleased to announce a new strategic partnership with Fintex Capital, the innovative investment firm dedicated to private debt. As part of this partnership, Nera secured an initial £20 million investment from Fintex.

The demand for law firm financing is growing quickly, as more and more consumers look for redress from hidden commissions on car financing to housing disrepair. The new funding line will allow more consumers to have access to the justice they deserve as the financial barriers are diminished.

The partnership marks a significant milestone for both companies. It expands Nera Capital’s reach, diversifies its funding sources and enables it to bring the benefits of capital and expertise to a wider set of consumers. For Fintex, this is another landmark transaction, the 3^rd UK funding line of c. £20 million. This investment was fully funded by Fintex Capital’s flagship fund, Fintex Private Debt.

Aisling Byrne, Director of Nera Capital, said: “Fintex Capital’s investment enables the firm to accelerate its growth trajectory, further scaling its operations to provide crucial financial support to clients when they need it most. Along with being better positioned to ensure justice remains accessible, even against the most formidable adversaries, the additional funding line increases Nera Capital’s diversification.

The Fintex investment strengthens Nera’s financial base, diversifies our funding sources and allows us to explore new avenues in our market. It also enables us to scale our robust platform. We are pleased that our operations were once again endorsed by a prominent institutional investor.

Fintex made an excellent name for itself as a sophisticated, reliable lender in the UK and beyond. The Fintex team led by Sophie Batoua were a pleasure to deal with and the transaction was successfully executed in record time.”

Robert Stafler, CEO of Fintex Capital, said: “It comes as no surprise that demand for law firm finance is on the rise. This granular, insurance-backed financing provides vital funding to consumers when they need it most. It enables them and their lawyers to bring justice to families who without Nera’s support would be unable to seek redress.

Nera has a strong track record in its market, having successfully provided c. £200m in funding for UK consumer claims to date. We are delighted to see that our investment helps Nera solidify its position as a leader in its field. To us, this is just the beginning of a successful long-term partnership.”

Advisors: Nera Capital was advised by Walker Morris LLP, Mason Hayes & Curran LLP, and Copsey Murray Chartered Accountants. Fintex Capital was advised by Fox Williams LLP and Mason Hayes & Curran LLP

-ENDS-About Nera Capital: Established in 2011, Nera Capital is a specialist litigation funding provider with a presence in Manchester, Dublin, and The Netherlands. The firm is dedicated to supporting law firms and providing the financial resources necessary to pursue justice in both their Consumer and Commercial divisions.

Fintex Capital: (www.fintexcap.com) is a pioneering investment firm specialising in private debt. Since its inception, the firm has provided close to £400 million in private debt capital to borrowers across Specialty Finance and Real Estate Debt. Fintex is known for providing senior and mezzanine debt facilities to lending businesses in the UK and beyond; it also provides direct lending to asset-backed businesses and asset owners. The firm manages discretionary investment funds, as well as segregated managed accounts for various institutions.

Today marks the 15^th anniversary of the founding of Burford Capital, the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law. In just 15 years, Burford has gone from a single $130 million investment fund to a $7.4 billion industry leader – with a 27x increase in its market capitalization.

Burford is fortunate to have a deep and continually growing bench of talented professionals from the world’s leading law firms and companies; we report below on the latest additions to the Burford team.

In recognition of that strong bench and a continued focus on our clients, Burford is today appointing Aviva Will, currently Co-Chief Operating Officer, as President. In her new role, Ms. Will’s focus will be predominantly on high-value, client-facing activities as we continue to expand our global relationships and the business evolves yet more towards complex financings with sophisticated corporate counterparties.

Burford is similarly appointing David Perla, also currently Co-Chief Operating Officer, into a new market-facing role of Vice Chair, focusing globally on Marketing, Public Policy, Industry Affairs and Public Relations, drawing on Mr. Perla’s experience and relationships in past leadership roles, including as President of Bloomberg Law.

Christopher Bogart, CEO of Burford Capital, says: “It should come as no surprise that Burford Capital continues to not only grow talent from within, but also to attract experienced senior professionals. In our 15^th year, my co-founder Jon Molot and I are incredibly proud of Burford’s successes and its extraordinary people. Jon and I are just as committed today as we were on day one to redefining and advancing the business of law.”

Burford has also recently added a number of senior professionals from top global corporations and law firms, including:

Andrew Farthing as a Director in Texas, responsible for managing matters in Burford’s US portfolio. Prior to joining Burford, Mr. Farthing was a Director at Apple and previously a senior litigator at Latham & Watkins.

Carrie Tendler as Special Counsel in New York, responsible for advising on the enforcement of judgments in cases backed by Burford with a particular focus on the YPF matter. Prior to joining Burford, Ms. Tendler was a Partner at Kobre & Kim and a litigator at Cravath, Swaine & Moore.

Josh Reed as Senior Vice President in Chicago, responsible for managing matters in Burford’s patent portfolio. Prior to joining Burford, Mr. Reed was Head of Global Litigation at the Sisvel Group and Chief IP Counsel at Allscripts.

Kate Tellez as Senior Vice President in Chicago, responsible for assessing and underwriting legal risk as part of Burford’s patent group. Prior to joining Burford, Ms. Tellez was a Partner at Steptoe.

Florencia Villaggi as Vice President in New York, responsible for assessing and underwriting legal risk in investor-state and international commercial arbitration. Prior to joining Burford, Ms. Villaggi was Counsel at Herbert Smith Freehills.

Josh Wood as Head of Investor Relations in New York, with responsibility for directing Burford’s investor relations activities. Prior to joining Burford, Mr. Wood was Head of Shareholder Relations at Patria Investments and previously Vice President at Carlyle.

Nicholas Sinigaglia has joined as Global Controller in New York as a key member of the finance management team. Prior to joining Burford, Mr. Sinigaglia was Chief Accounting Officer at Pie Insurance.

About Burford Capital

Burford Capital is the leading global finance and asset management firm focused on law. Its businesses include litigation finance and risk management, asset recovery and a wide range of legal finance and advisory activities. Burford is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BUR) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE: BUR), and it works with companies and law firms around the world from its offices in New York, London, Chicago, Washington, DC, Singapore, Dubai and Hong Kong.

For more information, please visit www.burfordcapital.com.

Law In Order, the leading provider of comprehensive document and digital solutions for the legal industry and government, is proud to announce the launch of its latest eBundle solution, utilising Lexel’s latest innovation GenAI technology. This revolutionary integration marks a significant advancement in legal technology, offering enhanced efficiency, intelligence, and collaboration for legal professionals across Australia, Asia, and the Middle East.

The new eBundle solution harnesses the power of Lexel’s GenAI capabilities to streamline evidence management and digital bundle preparation for eHearings. GenAI brings advanced generative AI functionality that provides deep contextual intelligence on case materials, enabling lawyers and legal teams to process and analyse evidence faster, with greater accuracy and insight.

For nearly a decade, Law In Order has worked closely with LegalCraft, the creators of Lexel, to bring unparalleled technology solutions to legal professionals. This new initiative further solidifies the partnership, as both companies strive to push the boundaries of what legal tech can achieve.

Rey Penalosa, Law In Order’s Head of eHearings: “The integration of Lexel’s GenAI into our eBundle solution is a game changer. We’re excited to offer our clients an ‘All in One, integrated’ tool that not only simplifies the preparation process but also enhances their ability to present cases with precision. This collaboration strengthens our commitment to delivering the most innovative legal technology solutions to the market.” 

Vamsi Madiraju, Chief Operating Officer at LegalCraft, added, “Australia has always embraced Lexel technology, and it’s the perfect market for us to launch GenAI. Law In Order has been an integral partner for us in this journey, and we are thrilled to collaborate with them on this exciting new offering. The integration of GenAI into Law In Order’s eBundle solution will empower legal teams with unprecedented capabilities.”

About Law In Order 

Law In Order is a leading provider of end-to-end document and digital solutions, specialising in document production, eDiscovery management, and specialist court services. With a strong focus on innovation, the company is dedicated to empowering legal professionals with the tools and expertise they need to excel.

About LegalCraft 

LegalCraft is the creator of Lexel, a leading evidence management platform used by legal professionals globally. Lexel’s GenAI capabilities enhance legal workflows by providing AI-driven contextual intelligence on case materials, improving efficiency and accuracy in evidence management.

Aperture Investors, an alternative asset manager and part of the Generali Investments platform, today announced that Luke Darkow has joined the firm to lead its new private credit Litigation Finance strategy. 

Darkow joins Aperture from Victory Park Capital, a global alternative investment manager, where he was a Principal and Portfolio Manager responsible for sourcing, analyzing, executing, and managing investments within the litigation finance asset class. Prior to Victory Park Capital, Darkow held roles at TPG Capital and Morgan Stanley. 

“With Aperture entering its next phase of growth, we see significant potential in specialty lending, particularly in litigation finance, which we believe remains a relatively underbanked asset class. Estimates suggest that the litigation finance market could double annually through 2035,” said Peter Kraus, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, Aperture Investors. “Litigation Finance is a niche, relationship-driven sector—and Luke is no tourist. His expertise in both private and public debt investments, his deep network of law firms and legal service providers, and his ability to source opportunities and raise capital will allow us to build out this unique offering at Aperture.”

Litigation Finance involves the provision of third-party capital to help finance law firms or plaintiffs pursuing legal claims in exchange for, or collateralized by, a percentage of proceeds received upon the successful resolution of legal disputes. Aperture’s Litigation Finance strategy will primarily provide structured loans to law firms backed by expected legal fee receivables from procedurally mature, settled, and/or short duration legal cases, targeting uncorrelated returns.

“I’m incredibly pleased to join Aperture and help drive the firm into new opportunities in private credit with this niche, asset-based lending strategy,” commented Darkow. “As Aperture expands its slate of strategies and products, I’m also attracted to the intellectual horsepower and best-in-class infrastructure within the broader firm.” 

About Aperture Investors 

Aperture is an alternative asset management firm offering credit and equity strategies in commingled and bespoke portfolios for institutional investors. Aperture’s mission is outperformance, and it is focused on identifying portfolio managers who it believes have a unique edge and can consistently deliver innovative, solutions-oriented investment results throughout market cycles. Since inception, Aperture has steadily grown its breadth of products, and as of August 31st, it manages approximately $4 billion. Its investment strategies are diversified across asset classes and geographies – each managed by a dedicated investment team – with distribution across North America, Europe, Middle East and Asia. 

Aperture Investors was founded in 2018 and is led by industry veteran Peter Kraus and by Generali, one of the largest global insurance and asset management providers. For more about Aperture, visit us at www.apertureinvestors.com.

Danny Kinnear, founder of EAKO Capital, leverages his experience with top financial institutions like Deutsche Bank, Nomura, and Litigation Capital Management to offer innovative financial solutions to corporates, law firms, and funders.  EAKO partners with Google Ventures and Visa-backed entities, as well as major banks, to provide:

• Rapid bank account setup (48-72 hours)
• Diverse funding options (on both a recourse and non-recourse basis)
• Competitive foreign exchange services (a demonstration of how much we can save you, look here)
• Forward credit lines for risk management hedging purposes
• FX options and structured solutions
• Risk management consultancy to resolve complex situations – through our extensive network we can find solutions to most currency problems

Company Name and Description:   EAKO Capital helps law firms, companies, and asset managers access a range of funding and financial risk management solutions.

Company Website:  www.eakocapital.com

Year Founded:  2022

Headquarters:   Supporting clients globally out of London, United Kingdom

Area of Focus:  Comprehensive financial support through multi-currency accounts, currency and interest rate hedging, cross-border & mass payment solutions, and the provision of access to funding, including litigation finance.

Member Quote: “EAKO combines deep banking expertise with technology to deliver intelligent, cost-effective currency and funding solutions to business and asset managers operating internationally.”

Aaron Winston is an author and the Strategy Director at Express Legal Funding, bringing over a decade of experience in the consumer finance industry. In recent years, Aaron has risen to be recognized as an expert in SEO and law firm content marketing, being featured in multiple case studies.

Aaron leverages his deep understanding of digital strategies to enhance Express Legal Funding’s online presence and brand authority with hundreds of thousands of unique website visitors annually. His approach combines analytical precision with creativity, making him a thought leader in the fields of pre-settlement funding and search engine marketing.

Company Name and Description: Express Legal Funding is a nationally recognized and trusted pre-settlement funding company and brand based in Plano, Texas, and is dedicated to providing fair, fast, and affordable financial support to claimants bringing personal injury and other tort claims.

Company Website: https://expresslegalfunding.com/

Year Founded:  2015

Headquarters:  5717 Legacy Drive, Suite 250, Plano, Texas 75024

Area of Focus: Pre-settlement Funding, SEO, Content Marketing, Law Firm Digital Marketing and Websites

Member Quote: Can a pre-settlement funding company really be a household name if most people aren’t even aware the industry exists?

The following is a contributed piece by Tom Webster, Chief Commercial Officer at Sentry Funding.

An EU stakeholder survey is gathering practical information on the operation of third-party funding across the European Union. The study, ‘Mapping Third Party Litigation Funding (TPLF) in the European Union’, was given an extended deadline of 3 September 2024.

Conducted by Civic Consulting and the British Institute of International and Comparative Law (BIICL), the research will help the European Commission analyse the legal framework and practical operation of litigation funding in the EU and make policy decisions in the area.

The survey seeks views from stakeholders with experience of third-party funding, including funders, lawyers, consumer organisations, other businesses, public authorities, members of the judiciary and others. As well as questions seeking to discover the extent of funding activity in each EU jurisdiction and typical levels of investment, it also asks for views on both positive and negative effects of litigation funding.

In relation to positive effects, the survey asks a number of questions including whether respondents have observed that current litigation funding practices lead to better access to the courts for parties who could not litigate without funding; whether there is a deterrent effect on companies that serve consumer markets due to the threat of mass claims relating to unsafe products or unfair practices; and whether respondents have seen a filtering effect on claims as those with a low chance of success will not be funded.

In relation to negative effects, questions include whether respondents have observed conflicts of interest; undue influence on decisions such as settlements and appeals; and the funding of frivolous claims.

The EU survey is just one of a number of projects currently examining the litigation funding sector. Also focusing on the EU market, the European Law Institute is undertaking a substantial research project with the aim of establishing a set of principles to identify the issues that should be taken into account when entering into litigation funding agreements.

Meanwhile in the UK, the Legal Services Board recently published a report on litigation funding in England and Wales (https://legalservicesboard.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/A-review-of-litigation-funding.pdf), and the Civil Justice Council has embarked on a wide-reaching review of the sector (https://www.judiciary.uk/related-offices-and-bodies/advisory-bodies/cjc/current-work/third-party-funding/) which will include recommendations in relation to the future regulation of the industry.

Michelle Silvers is Chief Executive Officer and a Director of Court House Capital and leads the company’s business strategy, growth and operations across geographic markets. She oversees stakeholder relations with capital investors and all decisions pertaining to the company’s investment portfolio.

Michelle is a highly-respected leader in litigation funding. She co-founded the litigation funding industry in Australia in 1999 and has over 30 years’ combined funding and legal experience across commercial dispute resolution, insolvency, insurance and collective redress (class actions).

Michelle has played a crucial role in funding more than 200 legal disputes and is passionate about structuring capital and risk management solutions for clients and helping claimants gain access to justice.

In 2019 Michelle joined Court House Capital, quickly establishing the business as a funder of choice in Australia and New Zealand. Previously, she served as Managing Director and CEO of Litigation Lending Services Limited, where she pioneered portfolio funding and grew the business to become one of the most successful funders in the region. Her career also includes senior roles at leading international funders (Augusta Ventures and IMF Bentham, now Omni Bridgeway), global insurance firms (AMP, FAI General, Lawcover) and private legal practice (DLA Piper).

Michelle is a co-founder and Director of the Association of Litigation Funders of Australia (AALF) and is a regular speaker and commentator on industry developments. She holds a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from the University of New South Wales and is a Director of Court House Capital Management Limited.

Company Name and Description: Court House Capital is a leading litigation funder focused on cases in Australia and New Zealand. Court House Capital was established with a mission to provide financial and strategic support to parties seeking capital, risk management and access to justice. Our team is led by industry founders, with Australian based capital, and is renowned for expertise, agility and collaboration.

Company Website: courthousecapital.com.au

Year Founded:  2019

Headquarters: Sydney

Area of Focus: Litigation Finance

Member Quote: We offer cost and risk mitigation strategies for commercial clients and ‘a level playing field’ for those who cannot afford to pursue justice themselves. It is an honour to be co-founders of an industry that provides access to justice for so many, and to be the funder of choice for claimants and professional advisers. Our financial resources, industry network and knowledge has helped many claimants achieve successful outcomes.

Manolete (AIM:MANO), the leading UK-listed insolvency litigation financing company, today announces its audited results for the year ended 31 March 2024. 

Steven Cooklin, Chief Executive Officer, commented: 

“These annual results show that Manolete has now recovered strongly from the UK Government’s suppression of the UK insolvency sector that prevailed during the Covid period. The Company has returned to profitability and has continued its track record of consistent operational cash generation. That has been driven by a record number of 251 case completions in FY24.

The trading results for the new financial year, which commenced on 1 April 2024, clearly show that this positive momentum has continued: year to date, new case enquiries are running 22% ahead of FY24 and our in-house legal team has already completed 116 cases with an aggregate value of £11.8m (compared to this stage last year, where we had completed 93 cases for a total value of £6.3m). This is also reflected in our gross cash receipts where we have already collected £10.3m in the first five months of this financial year, compared to £8.7m for the whole six-month, first half period of the previous financial year.

“Widely reported, challenging, multiple, macro-economic factors including: high interest rates, persistent inflationary threats, stretched Government balance sheets and global conflicts, provide strong tailwinds and significant momentum for further growth. As the clear market leader in the UK insolvency litigation finance sector, the Company is exceptionally well positioned to take advantage of these conditions”. 

Financial (statutory and non-statutory) highlights: 

• Realised revenues on completed cases were £24.2m, a decrease of 10% (FY23: £26.8m) although FY23 included an exceptionally large, funded case completion of which £4.9m was recorded in realised revenue (total settlement £9.5m).
• Adjusting for that single exceptional case, FY24 realised revenues were 11% higher than FY23. 
• 92% of total revenues represented by realised revenues on fully completed cases (FY23: 129%). 
• Increase in the valuation of the cartel cases contributed £0.1m to gross profit in FY24 (FY23: £1.2m). 
• EBIT increased to £2.5m, which represented a positive change from an EBIT loss of £3.1m in the prior year. 
• Gross cash receipts from completed cases were £17.7m, a decrease of 34% (FY23: £26.7m, however, FY23 included the same one-off exceptionally large case completion, referred to above, which delivered gross cash receipts of £9.5m. Excluding that case, gross cash receipts rose by 3%). 
• The Company’s retained share of gross cash receipts from completed cases (after all legal costs and payments to Insolvent Estates) was £10.8m, a decrease of 18% (FY23: £13.1m) but again, the only reason for the decrease was the £9.5m exceptional case in FY23. 
• Cash generated from operations (after all completed case costs and all overheads but before new case investments and taxation) was £5.0m (FY23: £8.0m). 
• As at 31 March 2024, the Company had cash balances of £1.4m and borrowings of £13.7m resulting in a net debt of £12.3m (FY23: £0.6m and £10.5m, respectively and therefore a net debt of £9.9m). 

Operational highlights: 

• A record number of new case investments in UK insolvency cases, an increase of 18%: 311 in FY24 (FY23: 263). 
• A record number of 251 cases were completed in FY24 (FY23: 193 cases), with an average duration per case of 13.2 months (FY23: 15.5 months), generating a Money Multiple of 1.9x (FY23: 1.9x) and an IRR of 131% (FY23: 131%) (based on unaudited internal management information). 
• As previously reported, following the ending in April 2022 of the Covid-related emergency legislation to suppress UK insolvencies and the withdrawal of very substantial financial support to UK businesses by the previous Government, the number of UK insolvencies have been at record high levels. The first wave of these insolvencies has predominantly been the smaller and weaker “zombie” companies. Only in recent months have the larger company insolvencies, typically by way of Administration, returned to levels seen before the Covid pandemic. This has resulted in record high numbers of cases taken on by Manolete but the average case size is smaller than had been the case, pre-pandemic. By way of comparison: FY21 was the trading year that best reflects the completion values of cases acquired and funded before the Covid-19 impact (this is because, on average, cases take around 12 months to complete). In FY21, audited realised revenues were £24.4m from 135 cases: an average of £180k per case, which is close to double the average for FY24 of £96k. 
• ROI of 116% and Money Multiple of 2.2x from 933 completed cases since inception (based on unaudited internal management information). 
• Average case duration across the full lifetime portfolio of 933 completed cases is 12.7 months · 19% increase in live cases: 418 in process as at 31 March 2024 (351 as at 31 March 2023)

Current Trading 

• The first five months of FY25 have been buoyant:
  • Highest ever number of new case enquiries year to date: 348 (FY24: 286). 
  • 103 new case investments, which is broadly tracking the record 146 new case investments for the whole first six months of FY24. 
  • 116 case completions at an aggregate value of £11.8m (FY24: 93 case completions at a total value of £6.3m). o Gross cash receipts from previously completed cases is £10.3m, compared to £8.7m for the whole first six months of FY24. 
  • Net cash receipts (after all payments to insolvent estates and all associated external legal costs) are £6.5m year to date for FY25, compared to £4.6m for the whole first six months of FY24. 

Outlook 

• Given that the number of corporate insolvencies in the UK remain at record highs, the Company can look forward to a sustained period of growth. A strong recovery in the number of larger case investments signed in the second half of FY24 is also an encouraging indicator of future business strength.

A copy of the annual report and accounts will be available on the Company’s website shortly and will be posted to shareholders in due course.

The full announcement and results can be read here.

Nera Capital’s groundbreaking partnership with a substantial European investment platform, is poised to significantly benefit the company’s consumer division. 

This latest success has come at a prosperous time for Nera Capital, which earlier this year expanded into Europe, opening an office in The Netherlands, adding to its locations in England and Ireland. 

Following its establishment in 2011, the company has become a pioneer in the legal finance industry. Nera Capital is a specialist funding provider to law firms across Europe and the US.  The firm has administered legal finance in numerous jurisdictions and assisted more than 200,000 claimants to date. 

Recently, Nera secured a sought after spot in the European Litigation Funders Association. Director of Nera Capital, Aisling Byrne, said: “This latest funding partner is a strategic advancement which will greatly enhance the services we provide to our clients and partners. 

“I am excited about the possibilities this funding line will unlock.” Ms Byrne called the deal a ‘significant milestone’ for the business.  She added: “Nera Capital continues to advocate for transparency and promoting higher industry standards. We assist financially vulnerable consumers, whilst maintaining exceptional returns for our investors and all stakeholders. 

“This newest collaboration allows us to enhance consumer access to justice, supporting equitable outcomes over time for more people.” 

Express Legal Funding, a leading provider of pre-settlement funding services, proudly announces the establishment of the Legal Funders for Actually Fair Funding (LFAFF), a coalition dedicated to safeguarding consumers and law firms through strategic vendor partnerships and ethical pre-settlement funding practices.

A New Standard in Legal and Consumer Protection
LFAFF aims to redefine the legal funding industry by championing fairness, transparency, and inclusivity. This new trade organization is committed to ensuring that injured claimants, regardless of their background, can access the financial support they need to cover their living costs while pursuing justice, and law firms benefit from reliable, transparent vendors to accelerate their growth.

“At Express Legal Funding, our commitment has always been to support both our clients and the legal community with integrity,” said Aaron Winston, Author and Strategy Director at Express Legal Funding. “With the launch of LFAFF, we’re taking this commitment to the next level by establishing a trusted alliance that prioritizes ethical standards and transparency in all legal service industry vendor partnerships, reducing overhead expenses and protecting law firms from wasted SEO and marketing costs.”

Core Objectives of LFAFF

• Industry Best Practices (B2C): Implement a higher standard for pre-settlement funding, providing plaintiffs access to financial resources without compromising their legal claims.
• Law Firm Support (B2B): Providing law firms with access to pre-vetted, trustworthy vendors to enhance their practice and client service, with potential discounts for member firms.
• Ethical Standards and Transparency: Promoting high ethical standards across all vendor partnerships, ensuring that the legal funding industry remains accountable and trustworthy.

Membership and Benefits
Expanding beyond the pre-settlement funding industry, LFAFF is open to law firms and vendors who are committed to upholding the organization’s ethical standards and guidelines. Members will benefit from a network of like-minded professionals, access to exclusive resources, and the opportunity to contribute to the ongoing development of industry best practices.

About Express Legal Funding
Express Legal Funding is a nationally recognized and trusted pre-settlement funding company and brand based in Plano, Texas. As a premier provider of pre-settlement funding, it’s dedicated to offering plaintiffs the financial support they need while they await the resolution of their cases. The company is committed to ethical practices and transparency, ensuring that its clients receive fair and equitable services.

About LFAFF
The Legal Funders for Actually Fair Funding (LFAFF) is a trade organization founded by Express Legal Funding to promote ethical standards, consumer protection, and strategic partnerships in the legal funding industry. LFAFF is committed to fostering a fair and transparent environment for both law firms and the consumers they serve.

Nakiki SE announces that it is investigating a capital market claim of up to EUR 400,000 against a company listed on the Open Market of the Düsseldorf Stock Exchange. Nakiki is thus opening up a new area of business: the financing of securities law claims.

With this step, Nakiki SE expands its expertise in the area of litigation financing and continues its growth strategy. The financing of securities litigation enables investors and shareholders to pursue potential claims against listed companies without financial risk. Nakiki SE assumes the full cost of the litigation and receives a share of the proceeds in the event of a successful outcome.

This new business area responds to the growing demand for specialised financing models for legal claims in the capital market. Nakiki SE is supported by an experienced team of lawyers and financial experts to ensure that cases are thoroughly investigated and the plaintiffs’ chances of success are maximised.

With the establishment of securities litigation financing, Nakiki SE is positioning itself as a leading player in a dynamically growing market. We see considerable potential here to facilitate investors’ access to capital market legal protection and at the same time to diversify our portfolio,” says Andreas Wegerich, CEO of Nakiki SE.

Today a leading competition law expert, Professor Barry Rodger, has filed a legal claim worth up to £1.04 billion against Google before the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal (“CAT”). Google is accused of abusing its dominant position to the detriment of a large class of thousands of UK app developers who need to use its app marketplace, ‘Play Store’ or ‘Google Play’, to access their customers. The class action lawsuit seeks compensation for the losses in revenues suffered by those individuals and businesses, many of whom are SMEs, from August 2018 onwards. 

Professor Rodger alleges that Google has used a variety of technical and contractual restrictions to ensure that Google’s Play Store is the only place where UK app developers can market or sell apps designed for Android devices. The result is that UK app developers have little choice other than to use the Google Play Store if they want to reach a wide audience. Google has then used its dominant position in app distribution to require developers to pay excessive and unfair commissions (of up to 30%) on all their sales of digital content to customers. Professor Rodger claims that absent the combination of exclusionary and exploitative conduct, app developers would have paid less to distribute their apps and sell their digital content. 

Professor Rodger’s action follows significant litigation and regulatory scrutiny of Google’s Play Store conduct around the world, including by the European Commission, the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority and the US Congress. 

A class action is needed in the present case because UK app developers would not individually have the means to each bring claims against Google. The UK’s opt-out class action regime in the CAT provides a mechanism by which these app developers can legitimately seek damages for the harm they have suffered as a result of Google’s conduct. 

Professor Rodger’s claim is backed by a legal team composed of competition litigation and digital markets specialists, Geradin Partners and a counsel team of Robert O’Donoghue (Brick Court Chambers), Daniel Carall-Green (Fountain Court Chambers) and Sarah O’Keeffe (Brick Court Chambers). The claim also relies on the expertise of Professor Amelia Fletcher CBE, Professor of Competition Policy at the University of East Anglia, who has been assisted in preparing her economic report by a team of economists at Fideres. The claim is funded by Bench Walk Advisors, a leading litigation funder with a team of multi awardwinning finance professionals and litigators. 

Professor Rodger said: “It is extremely important that the principles of fairness and equality of opportunity underlie our rapidly expanding digital economy by ensuring effective redress for those harmed by any abusive anti-competitive behaviour in the marketplace. I am bringing this claim because I believe that Big Tech businesses like Google should not be allowed to run roughshod over small businesses. I teach my students every day about the importance of enforcement of competition law and I am now ‘practising what I preach’ by seeking redress in the form of compensation for significant business damage suffered by this class of Android app developers.” 

Founding Partner of Geradin Partners, Damien Geradin, said: “Google is one of the most powerful companies in the world. Regulators around the globe have scrutinised its Play Store conduct and consider it harmful. Yet Google continues to use its monopoly position to force out competition and to exploit app developers. It is imperative therefore that developers in the UK also have the opportunity to seek redress for Google’s wrongful conduct.” 

More information on the claim and regular updates for the proposed class can be found at: www.googleplaystoredeveloperclaim.com.  

McDonald Hopkins is proud to welcome John J. Hanley as a Member in the Business Department and the Litigation Finance Practice Group. John brings with him years of experience, a proven track record of success and an innovative spirit that will play a pivotal role at the firm.

“McDonald Hopkins is a great brand in the litigation finance space.” said John. “The goal here is to capture market share. We will continue to be among the best and most active in the litigation finance space, and I’m excited to contribute to it.”

John specializes in litigation finance and complex financial transactions. He has over two decades of extensive experience from highly esteemed East Coast law firms in first and second lien financings, private debt and equity placements, acquisition and sale of loans, securities, trade claims, and other illiquid assets. His clientele includes a diverse array of financial entities, such as litigation funders, business development companies, specialty lenders, investment banks, hedge funds and others. He attributes his success in the field to his client-focus and the way he approaches complex matters.

“I identify as a part of the client’s team. I use terminology like ‘our position,’ ‘our claims,’ ‘our proceeds,’ and I mean it. It may seem small, but I think it strikes a chord and makes a difference,” John noted.

John’s arrival is a strategic step in building upon the success and influence the Litigation Practice Group has achieved. His addition bolsters a powerhouse team of attorneys, including Marc Carmel and Edward Reilly, who have deep experience in this field. This addition aligns with the group’s recent Chambers ranking, which recognized it as one of five firms ranked in the 2024 Chambers Litigation Support Guide for Litigation Support Deal Counsel (USA-Nationwide) and Marc Carmel as one of eight attorneys ranked individually.

“With John, we truly are positioned to offer unparalleled expertise and service in the litigation finance realm. This not only affirms our leadership in the field but also demonstrates our ongoing dedication to expanding and enhancing the support we provide to our clients. We believe no other middle-market practice matches the scope of our engagements, and John’s arrival shows that the best in the business want to be here. We are thrilled to have him on the team,” said Marc Carmel, Chair of the Litigation Finance Practice and Managing Member of McDonald Hopkins’ Chicago office.

David Gunning, the Chair of McDonald Hopkins’ Business Department echoed Carmel’s sentiment.

“John is an invaluable addition to our Business Department,” said David Gunning, the Chair of McDonald Hopkins Business Department. “His experience will not only strengthen our Litigation Finance Group but will also enhance our broader finance capabilities. We’re excited to have John on board as we continue to grow our department and provide exceptional service to our clients across all areas of finance.”

John will be mostly remote from his home in New Jersey, but will be working closely with McDonald Hopkins’ Chicago office.