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Community Spotlight: Aisling Byrne, Co-Founder, Nera Capital

By John Freund |

Aisling Byrne is the Co-Founder of Nera Capital, a pioneering legal funding provider reshaping the landscape of litigation finance. Hailing from Ireland, she co-founded Nera Capital in response to the financial challenges following the 2008 global economic downturn, recognising the need for innovative funding solutions to support law firms and their clients.

With deep expertise in litigation finance, she has driven Nera Capital’s expansion into the UK consumer market while spearheading commercial litigation funding across Europe and the USA. Under her leadership, the firm has played a pivotal role in funding landmark actions in many jurisdictions. Beyond her professional achievements, Aisling is a passionate equestrian, competing internationally in showjumping with a talented string of horses.

Company Name: Nera Capital

Company Description: Founded in 2011, Nera Capital was established with a bold vision – to revolutionise legal finance by seamlessly integrating modern technology with traditional values. By funding essential disbursements, Nera Capital empowers law firms to pursue justice without financial constraints, ensuring that clients can access the legal representation they deserve.

With a proven track record of delivering pragmatic funding solutions, Nera has helped partner firms achieve remarkable growth in a short time. More than just a funder, Nera Capital serves as a strategic partner, leveraging its industry expertise, technology and extensive network to drive success for its clients.

Company Website: neracapital.com

Year Founded: 2011

Headquarters: Ireland, with offices in Manchester and The Netherlands

Areas of Focus: Nera Capital provides Law Firm funding across a diverse range of claim portfolios, including Financial Mis-selling, Data Breach, Personal Injury, and more. Always at the forefront of legal finance, Nera continually explores new claim types and remains open to innovative funding opportunities.

Member Quote: “When it comes to litigation funding, strategy and collaboration are key. A well-structured funding solution requires more than just financial backing – it demands a deep understanding of legal complexities, a forward-thinking approach, and a team that is both skilled and adaptable. At Nera Capital, we believe in building long-term partnerships with law firms, providing them with not just capital, but also the strategic guidance and support needed to navigate challenges and maximise success. By combining financial and technical expertise with a keen insight into evolving legal landscapes, we ensure that meritorious claims receive the investment they need to deliver justice.”

About the author

John Freund

John Freund

Commercial

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AALF Chairman: UK Should Avoid Repeating “Australia’s Flirtation with Overbearing Regulation”

By Harry Moran |

With the UK funding industry awaiting the outcome of the Civil Justice Council’s review of third-party litigation funding, most of the commentary about what direction the government should take has come from those professionals practicing inside the UK. However, in an example of transnational solidarity between funding markets, the head of Australia’s industry association has spoken out to encourage the UK government to act to protect its legal funding sector.

In an opinion piece for The Law Society Gazette, John Walker, chairman of the Association of Litigation Funders of Australia (AALF), presents a strong argument that the UK government must avoid following Australia’s past mistake of overregulating the legal funding industry. With the prospect of the CJC’s review soon reaching its conclusion, Walker argues that the government’s “priority must be addressing the uncertainty created by the PACCAR decision”, rather than acceding to the demands of “the powerful, well-resourced and disingenuous minority perspective of the US Chamber of Commerce.”

Walker points to the recent history of legal funding in Australia, where the strength of these critics’ views led to the previous governments introducing strict regulations that created an environment where “access to justice for claimants was denied, corporate wrongdoers were protected, and claims started to dry up.” As Walker explains, the true lesson from Australia was the reversal of these regulations by the new government in 2022, which has seen funding rebound and drive a wave of class actions representing Australians seeking justice once more.

Taking aim at the opponents of the litigation funding industry, Walker highlighted the “myths pedalled” by groups like Civil Fair Justice as being “built on falsehoods that risk clouding reality and choking off access to justice.” Putting the often-repeated claim of funders supporting frivolous claims in the crosshairs, Walker notes “in reality, funders in the UK fund as few as 3% of the cases they're approached about.”

Qanlex Rebrands as Loopa Finance

By Harry Moran |

Litigation funding startups are a common occurrence, especially in recent years. However, the rebranding of an established funder is less common, yet worth keeping an eye on.

In a new blog post, the litigation funder formerly known as Qanlex announced that it is rebranding and will now operate under the name: Loopa Finance. The funder emphasised that it is still “the same team, the same values, and the same focus”, but with a new name that represents  the adoption of a “a clearer, more modern, and more memorable identity.”

The blog post goes on to provide a fuller explanation of the new name: “Loopa refers to our way of working: examining each opportunity with a magnifying glass and creating virtuous loops of funding, access to justice, and efficient conflict resolution.” The announcement also clarifies that the rebranding “does not imply any structural, corporate, or operational modifications.”

Loopa was founded as Qanlex in 2020, offering litigation finance services for cases in Latin America before expanding its funding solutions to commercial claims and arbitrations in continental Europe. As LFJ reported in January of this year, the funder revealed that it was refining its Latin America strategy using new technologies and focusing on specific sectors within individual jurisdictions in the region. Examples of this sector focus include energy cases in Ecuador, real estate development matters in Costa Rica, and oil and energy cases in Colombia. 

More information about Loopa Finance can be found on its website

Echo Law and LLS File Class Action Against Toyota Finance in Australia

By Harry Moran |

Class actions in Australia continue to be viewed as desirable opportunities for litigation funders, with the first half of 2025 already seeing a number of funded claims brought on behalf of consumers wronged by the state or large corporations. 

A joint media release from Echo Law and Litigation Lending Services (LLS) announced that they are pursuing a new class action against Toyota Finance in Australia, this time over the sale of “junk” add-on insurance to consumers. The claim, which has been brought before the Supreme Court of Victoria, alleges that Toyota Finance and insurer Aioi Nissay Dowa Insurance Company Australia (ADICA), engaged in “unjust, unfair, misleading and unconscionable” conduct that breached the Corporations ACT, ASIC Act, and National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009.

The class action has been filed on behalf of any consumers who took out a car loan with Toyota Finance and were sold a Toyota branded add-on insurance policy between 1 January 2010 and 5 October 2021. The allegedly “junk” insurance policies covered by the class action include Toyota Payment Protection Insurance, Toyota Finance Gap Insurance, and Toyota Extended Warranty Insurance.

Alex Blennerhassett, Principal Lawyer at Echo Law, said that “this class action is about holding Toyota Finance and ADICA to account for knowingly selling junk insurance to everyday Australians, even though these policies offered no value.” In a separate post on LinkedIn, Emma Colantonio, Chief Investment Officer at LLS, said that the class action is “a strong example of litigation funding enabling access to justice and supporting consumers in holding major financial players to account.”

This class action is separate to the Flex Commissions claim which was filed by Echo Law against Toyota Finance in February 2024. That class focuses on allegations that car dealers secretly inflated the interest rate on consumers’ car loans, resulting in additional interest fees. The Supreme Court has ruled that these separate class actions can be managed together, and Ms Blennerhassett said that they expected “there to be a significant number of persons who are group members in both proceedings”. 

LLS is providing funding for both class actions brought against Toyota Finance. More information on both class actions can be found on Echo Law’s website.